China approves egg futures trading

BEIJING -- China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the country's top securities regulator, announced that it has endorsed the Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) to carry out egg futures trading.

Futures trading will help stabilize egg prices by increasing liquidity in the market, and could act as an efficient commodity hedge in the long run to promote stable development of the egg industry, said the CSRC.

The DCE has so far completed contract design and draft rules with a strict mechanism on transactions and settlements, and risk control measures on cash deposits, price fluctuation caps, and position limits have also been thoroughly researched, according to the CSRC.

The official listing date for the futures contracts will be decided based on preparation work by the DCE as well as market conditions, said the CSRC.

China's annual production of eggs totaled 24.3 million tons in 2012 with an average market value reaching 185.6 billion yuan ($30 billion) over the last five years, putting it in the top position worldwide for the past 28 years, according to official statistics.

Located in Dalian, a port city in northeast China's Liaoning Province, the DCE is one of four futures exchanges in China. It trades a wide range of futures, including contracts for corn, soybeans and coke.