CommSec website glitch forces traders offline

Commonwealth Bank online share trading arm CommSec has suffered a website glitch, with many users complaining of slow response times, and some users unable to place trades.

Shortly after the market open, CommSec tweeted that it was aware of the issue and that the problem was affecting both its website and mobile platforms.

Hi all, we are aware of site speed issue, impacting mobile and web platform. Update in 5 minutes. Thanks.

— CommSec Support (@CommSecSupport) September 19, 2013

The site was returned to normal around an hour later.

A spokesperson for the bank confirmed some customers were unable to place orders, and encouraged people to place urgent orders via the phone line.

He said the inaccessibility was related to a technical issue with a server and unrelated to market activities.

The ASX has seen a heavy day of trading, after Wall Street recorded record highs overnight in response to the US Federal Reserve unexpectedly deciding to kept its stimulus measures intact.