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14 May 2009
Lisbon / London – The London Metal Exchange (LME), the world’s premier non-ferrous metals market, will today update industry figures at the CDI Cobalt Conference 2009 in Lisbon, Portugal on the progress of its planned cobalt contract. The new contract will provide greater price transparency in the international cobalt markets and enable producers and other market participants to hedge their risk.
The conference, run by the Cobalt Development Institute (CDI), which has 44 members from 18 countries including all the major cobalt producers, is the leading forum for the cobalt industry.
Addressing delegates, The London Metal Exchange’s (LME) New Products Manager, Chris Evans, will outline the latest details for the LME cobalt contract including: -
- The LME cobalt contract will encompass production with a metal content of 99.3 percent and higher;
- It will trade in all three LME venues – open outcry ring trading, telephone broking, and on the electronic platform, LMESelect - initially out to 15 months;
- In terms of delivery, the LME will approve warehouses in Rotterdam, Baltimore and Singapore. Delivery will be in the form of drums for cobalt.
Chris Evans, New Products Manager at the LME comments: “The LME’s cobalt contract is not intended in any way to replace existing business relationships in the physical market. However, because our markets are open, transparent and regulated, LME cobalt prices will be the most representative, at any point in time. By establishing a price through an exchange venue, users of the market will also be able to hedge their risk, in effect using the contracts as an insurance policy against adverse price movements.”
The LME Cobalt Trading Update will take place at 9:15am on Thursday at the Corinthia Hotel, Lisbon, Portugal. The London Metal Exchange will also be running a free workshop at the conference where delegates will hear practical advice on how the LME contracts can help manage risk.
For further information, or to request and interview with a spokesperson, please contact:
Stephen White
Business Manager Corporate Affairs
t. +44 (0)20 7264 1701
e. stephen.white@lme.com
About the London Metal Exchange
The London Metal Exchange is the world's premier base metals market. It offers futures and options contracts for aluminium, copper, tin, nickel, zinc, lead, aluminium alloy and NASAAC, steel billet, plastics and soon cobalt and molybdenum. Last year, turnover for the Exchange was $10.24 trillion and the Exchange currently has 5.13m tonnes of metals on warrant in 516 warehouses across 38 locations globally.
http://www.lme.com/
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