Singapore bourse to start kilobar gold trading to lure investors

SINGAPORE -- Singapore Exchange Ltd., Southeast Asia's biggest bourse operator, will start trading a kilobar gold contract next month as it joins other nations in the biggest consuming region in a push for new price benchmarks.

The wholesale contract for 25 kilograms of 99.99 percent purity will start trading at 8:15 a.m. on Oct. 13, according to a joint statement from the exchange, IE Singapore, the World Gold Council, and the Singapore Bullion Market Association. The group said in June that trading may begin as soon as September.

The Shanghai Gold Exchange started bullion trading in the city's free-trade zone on Sept. 18, while CME Group Inc. is planning a physically-delivered futures contract in Hong Kong in the fourth quarter as global demand shifts from the West to the East. Asia accounted for 63 percent of total consumption of gold jewelry, bars, and coins last year, with China overtaking India as the biggest buyer, according to the council. ...

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