The Shanghai Futures Exchange is steadily moving ahead with its proposed trading of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) futures, a sign the bourse is quickening its pace to introduce a full range of energy futures.

 

"We formally started our research on the LPG product recently. We will gradually forge ahead with our work on a solid market research and study basis," said a statement from the exchange yesterday.

 

If successful, it would be the first LPG futures product traded in Asia.

 

China is now the world's second biggest LPG consumer and importer after the United States. The Chinese LPG market has increased more than tenfold since 1993.

 

Domestic LPG consumption reached 22 million tons last year, of which 6 million were imported.

 

China produced 16.1 million tons of LPG last year, up from the previous year's 14.7 million tons, according to the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Association.

 

"The introduction of LPG futures makes sense; LPG imports account for one third of total domestic consumption and prices are easily affected by surging oil prices," said an oil analyst at China Merchant Securities.

 

"The proposed LPG futures products would provide a much-needed instrument for (LPG) importers and traders to hedge the risks associated with fluctuating prices," the analyst added.

 

China's fast-growing economy has witnessed the soaring of both energy consumption and prices in recent years. That has led many industry players to call for the introduction of more energy futures products.

 

China is now the world's second largest oil user, consuming nearly 300 million tons of crude oil last year.

 

Currently, China has only one energy futures product oil fuel futures on the Shanghai futures bourse.

 

"The successful trading of oil fuel futures, introduced in 2004, has accumulated abundant experience for the introduction of crude oil and other oil futures products in future", said the Shanghai exchange in the statement.

 

The Shanghai Futures bourse is also actively looking at crude oil, gasoline and diesel futures products, it told China Daily earlier.

 

The exchange said it is planning to introduce a series of energy products, which may include energy derivative products such as plastics.

 

Two other futures exchanges in China are also interested in energy futures products.

 

Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange, a bourse based in Central China's Henan Province, is interested in introducing coal and electricity futures products, a senior manager said.

 

"We are interested in coal and electricity futures products but the work has stalled as we do not have adequate manpower to handle the project."

 

Another futures exchange, Dalian Commodity Exchange, is also reportedly interested in launching some energy futures. It was not available for comment yesterday.

 

The trading of oil fuel futures took more than two years to get final regulatory approval.

 

After a one-year lull last year, in which no new futures product was launched, two new commodity products were introduced in two of the country's three futures exchanges earlier this year.

 

The Dalian exchange was approved to trade soy oil futures while the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange was given the go-ahead to trade sugar futures.

 

(China Daily March 7, 2006)