Four Appointed to LME's Steel Committee
09/22/2015 - The London Metal Exchange (LME) has added four members to its steel committee as it prepares to launch new contracts for steel scrap rebar in November, the exchange has announced.
Joining the committee are Goldman Sachs executive director Phillip Killicoat; William Schmiedel, president of Sims Group Global Trade Corp.; Spencer Johnson, of INTL FCStone; and Gianpiero Repole, of the trade house Liberty Commodities.
Additionally, the LME said it has appointed Christian Schirmeister as a senior consultant to help promote the contracts. Schirmeister previously worked for the global commodities group at JP Morgan.
The LME is close to sealing deals with market makers to guarantee liquidity for the new contracts, Reuters news service reported.
"There's a lot of interest in hedging scrap and rebar ... what's preventing us is a lack of liquidity in (existing) contracts so having a market maker would be lovely to see," Antonio Novi, a director at Levmet, a metals trader that also provides hedging services to industrial companies, told the news service.
Novi, however, told Reuters he is unsure whether the contracts would succeed, and other industry experts said the contracts will need support from several major banks. Top steelmakers and institutional investors also will need to participate in order for the contracts to have longevity, Reuters reported.
Additionally, the LME said it has appointed Christian Schirmeister as a senior consultant to help promote the contracts. Schirmeister previously worked for the global commodities group at JP Morgan.
The LME is close to sealing deals with market makers to guarantee liquidity for the new contracts, Reuters news service reported.
"There's a lot of interest in hedging scrap and rebar ... what's preventing us is a lack of liquidity in (existing) contracts so having a market maker would be lovely to see," Antonio Novi, a director at Levmet, a metals trader that also provides hedging services to industrial companies, told the news service.
Novi, however, told Reuters he is unsure whether the contracts would succeed, and other industry experts said the contracts will need support from several major banks. Top steelmakers and institutional investors also will need to participate in order for the contracts to have longevity, Reuters reported.
