Gold benchmark contract launched in China

Shanghai Gold Exchange started trading a new gold contract on April 19th. The contract is meant to become a global benchmark similar to the gold fix originated in London and New York, but denominated in RMB.

Membership of 18 organizations is now confirmed, with two foreign banks and a foreign metals trading firm who will all have access to the contract.

The gold fix is a 100+ year old practice by a few London-based banks to set gold price two times every day, the derived price is used as a benchmark by the almost everyone involved in gold production, consumption and investment all over the world. The fix is conducted in USD, GBP and EUR. The new fix by the Shanghai Gold Exchange is the first time price is quoted in RMB.

China is a major gold producer and consumer, and its national currency is RMB, therefore additional currency risks are involved when the country has to rely on foreign currency quotation when importing and exporting the precious metal. If more cross-border transactions are conducted in RMB, China’s gold industry will see its currency risks lowered.