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Published on July 18, 2007

Although the exchange had targeted 1,000 contracts per day this year, the first half, especially March and April, dragged the average volume down to 400 contracts.

The three-year-old Afet traded an average 100 contracts per day in its first year and last year saw the figure reach slightly below 600 contracts.

President Napaporn Kurupasutachai said yesterday she hoped that rice would take up 20 per cent of contracts while 80 per cent would be for rubber.

Last year, rubber accounted for over 90 per cent of volume on the unexpectedly high global rubber price.

The baht's appreciation has not dulled rice trading but the fact that the government did not undertake price intervention was a key success, she said.

"Recently, this government has stayed away from the rice-pledging programme and allowed the price to reflect the price on Afet. That made trading in May and June more active," she said.

The exchange also wants to boost tapioca trading through a similar scheme.

"There's been some talk. The government is interested in allowing the tapioca price to move along with the Afet price, in the way it does with the rice price. Now details must be discussed," she said.

The exchange is also looking forward to the government's policy to promote ethanol consumption.

After the listing of shrimp was put on hold for a while, the exchange is now interested again in adding shrimp to its product line-up.

To access more customers, Afet and the Thailand Futures Exchange have studied the possibility of using the same brokerages to execute trades.

Piyarat Setthasiriphaiboon

The Nation