SINGAPORE (Commodity Online):
Singapore Mercantile Exchange (SMX) plans to list the world's first
Iron Ore Futures Contract*, settled basis the Metal Bulletin Iron
Ore Index. Metal Bulletin is the leading independent premium
information and pricing provider for the metals industries.
The Metal Bulletin Iron Ore Index (MBIOI) utilises daily price
data from a broad spectrum of industry participants and through
leading independent Chinese steel consultancy and data provider
Shanghai Steelhome?s widespread contact base of steel producers and
iron ore traders across China. MBIOI?s tie-up makes it the world?s
only index to-date with access to such data from a major Chinese
partner. The MBIOI is a tonnage-weighted calculation of actual
physical transactions, normalised to 62% Fe, CFR Qingdao and is
published daily at mid-day London time.
Mr. Thomas J. McMahon, Chief Executive Officer of SMX, said:
"This partnership with Metal Bulletin is indicative of our
diligence towards collaborative listings with key industry
participants. It is especially strategic, given that China is the
world?s largest importer of iron ore and Shanghai Steelhome?s data
feed. The futures market for iron ore and iron ore spot market have
only recently begun to take shape and as such, both are in need of
a firm reference-price mechanism. SMX is stepping into that space
in the markets via a robust index upon which effective price
hedging can be conducted with a strong measure of certainty."
Mr. Raju Daswani, Managing Director of Metal Bulletin, said: "As
the market leader in metals reporting globally, Metal Bulletin has
been reporting prices in the iron ore markets for close to a
century. With a shift to short term pricing, SMX?s decision to work
with our Iron Ore Index as a basis for global benchmarking is a
logical move and another significant breakthrough for the iron ore
industry."
Metal Bulletin is the premium intelligence service for metals
and steel market players globally, with coverage on all global
metals and steel markets including scrap through a comprehensive
package of the latest news, prices, expert market commentary and
statistics.