China, the world's top rice producer and consumer, will start trading Japonica rice futures on November 18 on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange, according to a statement from the exchange made on November 12. The exchange has received approval for launching the futures contracts from the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
The benchmark price for Japonica rice contracts will be set at 3,050 yuan ($491.9) per ton, said the exchange, which has already listed early rice futures.
China has sped up development of commodity futures markets to offer companies more tools to hedge risks while trying to have a bigger say in the pricing of major commodities in the global market.
The country's Japonica rice output stood at 64.44 million tons in 2012, accounting for 31.5 percent of China's total rice production. |