XN000022-1973-07-13 — Page 2

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Friday, July 13, 1973

LEGISLATION ON COMMODITY EXCHANGES

New legislation will be introduced next week in support of the

temporary ban imposed last month on the establishment of commodity exchanges

dealing with certain specified commodities such as sugar, coffee, wool and

tin, among others.

The bill the Commodity Exchange (Prohibition) Bill 1973, does

not apply to public markets, nor to commodity exchanges that were in

operation on June 20 this year, such as the daily rice auction and the

Gold and Silver exchange

But from the date the bill takes effect no new commodity exchanges

dealing or trading, whether in spot or futures contracts, in any of the

20 commodities specified in the schedule, will be permitted.

The specified commodities are: barley, cocoa, coffee, copper,

cotton, gold, lead, maize, oats, platinum, rice, rubber, silver, oil

seeds and vegetable oils, sugar, timber, tin, wheat, wool and zinc.

The bill makes it an offence to set up an exchange dealing with

these commodities. Offenders will be liable on conviction to a fine of

$500,000 and an additional fine of $50,000 may be imposed for each day

the offence continues.

In announcing the temporary ban in the Legislative Council on June 20,

the Financial Secretary, Mr. C.P. Haddon-Cave, said at the time that it was

not the government's intention to frustrate the development of a properly

regulated commodity exchange, or possibly more than one exchange, at a

later stage.

/The