Established in 1877 and located in the heart of The City of London, the London Metal Exchange is the world’s premier non-ferrous metals market.
It offers a range of futures and options contracts for non-ferrous, minor metals and steel.
The Exchange provides a transparent forum for all trading activity and as a result helps to 'discover' what the price of material will be months and years ahead. This helps the physical industry to plan forward in a world subject to often severe and rapid price movements. Such is the liquidity at the Exchange that the prices ‘discovered’ at the LME are recognised and relied upon by industry throughout the world.
The LME is a highly liquid market and in 2011 achieved record volumes with 146.6 million lots, equivalent to $15.4 trillion annually and $61 billion on an average business day. Based in London the LME is a global market with an international membership and with more than 95% of its business coming from overseas.
Being a principal-to-principal market, the only organisations able to trade are its member firms, of which there are various categories. LME members provide the physical industry with access to the market, to the risk management tools and to the delivery mechanism. Trading takes place across three trading platforms: through open-outcry trading in the 'Ring', through an inter-office telephone market and through LMEselect, the Exchange's electronic trading platform. |
