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"Our long-term view remains – we will eventually see 1.60 for cable and parity for EUR/GBP" -Paul Day, Mig Investments

Some 190 IPOs seeking to raise $33.1 billion in capital have been postponed or withdrawn across the world so far this year, according to Dealogic.

India moved a step closer to liberalizing its foreign exchange market with the launch of rupee currency futures trading on the National Stock Exchange on August 29. Initial activity was brisk, with about 70,000 contracts changing hands in the first session. The NSE contracts are extremely small by international standards – they have a notional value of just $1,000 – and would appear to be very much aimed at attracting retail participation. Perhaps not surprisingly, early trading was dominated by banks and large corporations.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange has pushed through a contentious $7.7 billion acquisition of the New York Mercantile Exchange following months of negotiations. The CME was already the largest derivatives exchange in the world but the combined group, with pro forma 2007 annual revenue of $2.7 billion and average trading volume of approximately 14.2 million contracts a day in the first two quarters of 2008, will now control some 98% of trading in US futures and exchange-traded options. "As a united company we are well positioned for a new phase of growth, innovation and product development that will benefit our customers, shareholders and market users around the world," commented CME Group executive chairman Terry Duffy.

East Timor’s only shot

High food prices have made the rise of agricultural commodity prices a politically controversial issue. One of the most controversial elements has been the role of investors, particularly hedge funds, in futures markets, which have been blamed for high prices by some observers.

Published in conjuction with: Citi, J.P. Morgan, HSBC, Standard Chartered

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Of benefit to both the environment and HSBC’s bottom line is the opening of a new internal network of conference rooms by the UK bank, which CIO Ken Harvey says will give "the experience and benefit of actually being in the room with colleagues on the other side of the world, without having to pack a suitcase".

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