SMX, wholly owned by India’s Financial Technologies (FITE.BO), will be the city-state’s second exchange when it comes on stream, putting it in competition with Singapore Exchange (SGXL.SI), which is also trying to grow its commodities and derivatives business.
The city-state’s second commodity exchange will clear contracts in 1,000-barrel sizes, it said today in an e-mailed statement, without saying when trading will begin. The volume is similar to contracts on the ICE Futures exchange, which are denominated in dollars. Prices will be quoted for 12 consecutive months, compared with 72 on ICE.
Singapore Exchange (SGX) today said its derivatives market will start trading the new SGX Nikkei Dividend Point Index futures from 17 June, making SGX the first Asian exchange to trade a dividend futures contract.
Contracts will be listed for the front-month and 11 consecutive months, SMX said in a statement on Wednesday. The size of the contract will be 1,000 barrels.
Singapore shares snapped a two-day winning streak to end lower today in line with most Asian bourses, with weak leads from US futures an additional negative factor.
Traders and analysts say the market is likely to see some more selling pressure tomorrow as investors look to book profit ahead of a shortened week. The market is closed on Friday for the Easter holiday.
Singapore Exchange (SGX) today said that it will offer a new futures contract based on the soon-to-be-launched Nikkei Stock Average Dividend Point Index. Nikkei Inc. (Nikkei) will begin calculating the index in April 2010.
Singapore shares on track for highest close in 9 weeks, with US futures providing supportive lead (DJIA +21 points), says Dow Jones Newswires.
STI is up 0.7% at 2,916.50 with resistance tipped at current 2010 high of 2,947. Dealer at local brokerage says Fed statement that US interest rates to stay low helping market sentiment: “There’s been a lot of money on the sidelines for some time; now money is moving because there is some comfort that rates are not going to rise (near-term).”
Singapore Exchange (SGX) says the SGX Fuel Oil 380cst futures contract is ready for trading from Feb 22.
This follows the confirmation by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) that it has no objection to the contract being offered and sold in the US. SGX says the CFTC’s decision will significantly strengthen the appeal of the contract for traders and investors in the international marketplace, and as a hedging tool.
Singapore Exchange (SGX) will start trading its new Fuel Oil 380-centistoke futures contract (FO 380 Contract) on Monday, Feb 22.
“The launch of our Fuel Oil futures contract will put SGX closer to becoming Asia’s commodity futures trading hub. The new contract provides our global participants an attractive price discovery and hedging product. This launch is timely and will bolster Singapore’s position as a commodities trading and clearing gateway,” says Magnus Bocker, Chief Executive Officer of SGX.
A stark warning about the finances of the games industry has been aired at the Edinburgh Interactive conference.
The sector had suffered "significant disruption" to its business model, Edward Williams, from BMO Capital Markets told the industry gathering.
"For Western publishers, profitability hasn’t grown at all in the past few years and that’s before we take 2009 into account," he said.
By contrast, he said, Chinese firms were still seeing improved profits.
What makes the difference between Western firms and Chinese developers was the way they went about getting products to players.
Western publishers, said Mr Williams, still relied on the traditional develop methods of putting a game on a DVD and then selling that through retail channels.
Chinese developers focussed primarily on the PC market and used direct download, rather than retail stores, to get games to consumers.
Those Chinese developers were also helped by the low number of console users in South East Asia (other than Japan) which meant developers there did not have to pay royalties to console makers.
Future models
Three factors, said Mr. Williams, were forcing the operating costs of Western firms to spiral upwards:
• Games are getting larger, which meant longer development time and larger staff costs.
• In the 1990s the PlayStation accounted for 80% of the market, today the console space is very fragmented, so developers have to work on many platforms at any one time.
• The cost of licensing intellectual property or gaining official sports body endorsement (such as FIFA or FIA) has gone up.
These factors, said Mr. Williams, explained the stagnation in overall profitability despite sales in the games sector increasing by $30bn (£24.17) over the past four years.
Recent figures suggest sales are also coming under pressure. US game sales fell by 29% in the last 12 months suggest statistics from research group NPD.
Speaking to the BBC, Peter Moore – president of EA Sports – said that while the Chinese and Western markets were still very different, he expected to see some significant changes in the way Westerners buy games in the future.
"In China, PC and mobile platforms will continue to dominate," he said. "There isn’t the necessity to buy other pieces of hardware and it is our job to service that."
"In Europe we are going to see more content that’s delivered electronically, be that through Steam, Xbox Live or whatever."
Mr Moore added that while this may have some impact on retailers, the future of the high street shop was still bright, especially if you factor in sales of hardware, peripherals and game-time cards.
"The release of Tiger Woods online as a free to play experience will be the real test of the Western consumer’s appetite for digital downloading," he said.
The game, scheduled for release in late 2009, has a segment which gamers can play for free online but can also pay for additional content as required.
Now in its sixth year, the Edinburgh Interactive Conference brings together industry figures, developers, publishers and the media to discuss issues facing the interactive game sector and to try to promote creativity.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
SGX seeks public comment on Nikkei Dividend Index Futures contract specifications
The Singapore Exchange (SGX) is inviting public feedback on the proposed contract specifications for the SGX Nikkei Stock Average Dividend Point Index Futures contract, which will be targeted for the derivatives market.
The Nikkei Dividend Index Futures is a standard, cash-settled futures contract based on the Nikkei Stock Average Dividend Point Index. The index is calculated by Nikkei Inc. and is based on accumulated dividends received by investors of constituent companies of the Nikkei Stock Average over a calendar year.
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