THE PRICE war was swift and brutal, lasting less than eight weeks. On October ist Charles Schwab said it would no longer charge retail customers for trading shares, exchange-traded funds or options online, forgoing $4.95 a trade. The share price of America's biggest discount broker dropped by nearly a tenth. That of its big rival, td Ameritrade, suffered more, plunging by a quarter (see chart). td Ameritrade followed in eliminating commissions two days later. It had little choice, though it reckoned the move would cut its revenue by $22om-24om a quarter, or 15-16%.
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