Short Take: Computer blunder by junior trader costs $17 million

A junior trader cost his firm about $17 million after he pressed the wrong buttons on his computer during a training exercise, Reuters reported. The blunder caused panic on dealing floors as screens flashed that someone wanted to sell 130,000 German bond futures contracts worth in excess of $19 billion. The trader's firm, which is believed to be a German financial institution, was contractually obliged to carry out the transaction.