China Monday set up its second petroleum exchange in Dalian, a port city in
northeastern Liaoning province, about four months after the launch of the
Shanghai Petroleum Exchange.
"We plan to start trading
fuel oil, bitumen, and several other petroleum and chemical products in May next
year," said Sun Xueshi, president of the exchange.
Experts believe the
move will strengthen the nation's petroleum market, sharpen the competitive edge
of domestic petroleum and chemical companies and increase oil supplies to
northeast China.
Sun said the exchange, with a registered capital of 10
million yuan (1.28 million U.S. dollars), is expected to have a trade volume of
up to 50 billion yuan (6.39 billion U.S. dollars) per year.
The
foundation for the exchange is the petroleum and chemical products market in the
Dalian Bonded Area, which has an annual trade volume of 10 billion (1.28 billion
U.S. dollars).
Sun said the investors in the exchange are Liaoning's
Liaohe Petroleum Exploration Bureau, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum
Corporation, and Sinopec Shengli Oilfield Company in eastern Shandong province.
He acknowledged that the investors
would raise the exchange's registered capital to 100 million yuan (12.8 million
U.S. dollars) once it starts operation.
He said the exchange now has
more than 100 traders, including petroleum and chemical companies and
warehouses.
He added that exchange officials are still mulling
transaction rules without divulging further details.
Dalian is one of
China's major refined oil production bases and major transfer ports for crude
oil. Last year, it processed 19.68 million tons of crude oil and transferred a
further 21.85 million tons.
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