St. Petersburg exchange proposes self-regulating association for commodities market

MOSCOW. Nov 21 (Interfax) - The St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange (SPIMEX) has proposed that commodity market participants join together under the aegis of a unified self-regulating organization (SRO) to formulate a common position, exchange head Igor Artemyev said at a meeting with the exchange's largest traders and brokers.

He proposed creating an SRO akin to the National Association of Stock Market Participants (NAUFOR) and giving it a similar name but with an emphasis on exchange-traded commodities - the National Association of Commodity Market Participants, or NAUTOR.

"This association will be created to work out common standards for activities on the exchange commodity market. The exchange is prepared to offer its platform for discussing key documents, such as a charter, and working out common approaches taking into account the position of government agencies and the Bank of Russia," Artemyev said.

He said the SRO would monitor compliance with the developed standards and stop unethical practices.

Furthermore, the creation of NAUTOR will make it possible to convey market participants' unified position to federal government bodies and specialized agencies, he said.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service and Central Bank of Russia support the creation of an organized association, Artemyev said.