Egypt streamlines regulations for commodity exchange

 

Egypt streamlines regulations for commodity exchange

 

Ahmed Kamel

The government has finalized the organizational and administrative framework of the nation’s first commodity exchange. The framework outlines the trading environment for commodities on the new financial entity.

The US-based Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) is a well-known example of a commodity exchange.

The board of directors of the Egyptian Commodity Exchange is scheduled to draft a bill for the nature of trading and products to be listed on the commodity exchange platform.

Ibrahim Ashmawy, the newly appointed head of the Egyptian Commodity Exchange, told the local media that President Abdel Fattah El Sisi had given instruction to set up a system for internal trade in Egypt emulating the world’s top commodity exchanges.

Ashmawy pointed out that the commodity exchange would be an organized market for trading commodities through an electronic platform between a group of producers and farmers and buyers.

He explained the buyers could be commercial chains, hotels, hospitals, large grocery stores, noting that the commodity exchange would create a direct relationship between the seller and the buyer.

There would be no mediators between the seller and the buyer on the commodity exchange, slashing prices by 15 per cent.

The commodity exchange is part of an overall economic reform program for sustainable development, in line with Egypt's Vision 2030. It would bank on sophisticated technology for trading and warehousing.