[2007-09-19]  Egypt's CASE, Nordic OMX eye Cairo derivatives
Egypt's Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (CASE) and Nordic Exchange Group OMX plan to start a derivatives market in Cairo in the fourth quarter of 2008, CASE's chairman said on Tuesday.

"We will have an operating derivative market in the last quarter of next year," CASE Chairman Maged Shawky told Reuters by telephone.

"We are partners with OMX," he said, but did not give further details.

Shawky declined to say whether the first derivatives to trade on the exchange would be in commodities or equities.

An industry source said that CASE would introduce equity derivatives first, followed by commodities contracts in the first quarter of 2009.

Earlier this year, Shawky said the bourse was in talks with experts from other exchanges to identify commodities that should be traded on a Cairo platform. Cotton was one commodity under consideration, he said then.

Wheat and rice were expected to feature, a government source said in April.

Borse Dubai made a $4 billion takeover bid for OMX in August. The bid topped a previously agreed $3.7 billion bid from U.S. bourse group Nasdaq.

Borse Dubai is a holding company for Dubai government's stakes in Dubai Financial Market and the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX).



Source: © Reuters 2007.