Rosario Futures Exchange (ROFEX)

Brief history

The Rosario Futures Exchange (ROFEX) was founded in 1909 as the 'Mercado General de Productos Nacionales' (General Exchange of National Commodities). It traded huge volumes of linen (1.3m metric tonnes in 1924), corn (3.3m metric tonnes in 1929) and wheat (3.7m metric tonnes in 1924) during the first two decades, until trading was hampered by interventionist governments and chronic inflation.

Between the late thirties and the end of the eighties, the Exchange was used by government as a regulatory agency and for official grain purchases. At the beginning of the nineties the government allowed the negotiation of grain futures contracts in US dollars.

In 2001, the Derivatives Financial Division was created with trading on local bonds and foreign exchange. Peso-dollar cash-settled futures and options were first traded in May 2002 and have experienced substantial growth; these contracts now account for over 98% of market volume, which had increased 30-fold by 2005. At the end of 2004 new derivatives contracts on interest rates and inflation were launched. Futures contracts on live cattle index and sovereign bonds are to be launched on 2007.

Structure

The Rosario Futures Exchange is a profit-making organisation composed of 10.500 shares.

Trading statistics

Trading system

Trading is through an electronic trading system which is internet-based.

Margin information

Margins are defined by Argentina Clearing House (Central Counterparty) periodically.

Contracts: