CBMX transfers spot iron ore trading platform to new entity

China Beijing International Mining Exchange (CBMX) said it will transfer its physical iron ore trading platform to the newly-formed Beijing Iron Ore Trading Center Corporation (Corex).

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Corex will operate the spot iron ore trading platform while CBMX will assist its clients to transfer their membership to the new entity, CBMX said in a letter to its members on Monday September 1.

Corex comprises 13 shareholders including China Iron and Steel Assn (Cisa), China Beijing Equity Exchange, Baosteel, Angang Group, Shougang Group, Hebei Iron & Steel Group, China National Minerals, Sinochem International, CITIC Metal, Vale, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group (FMG), according to the statement.

CBMX vp You Song is the legal representative for the joint venture, Steel First understands.

Other details of this transfer were unclear. CBMX declined to comment beyond the release.

“There are no special reasons [for the new entity]. It will be doing the same business, it’s just the shareholding structures that are different. It would be the same as Global Ore with supports from all sides of the market,” an official at Cisa told Steel First. He declined to elaborate further.

While CBMX was backed by Cisa, Singapore-based Global Ore counts Baosteel, BHP Billiton, Glencore, Hunan Valin, Minmetals, Rio Tinto and Vale as founding shareholders.

A total of 24.99 million tonnes of iron ore has been traded on Global Ore this year up to the end of August. Volumes on CBMX, on the other hand, reached just 6.19 million tonnes.

BHP, Rio Tinto, FMG and Global Ore did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publishing.