iStock_000005765286XSmallEXCHANGE NEWSWIRE, 30 September 2011

CME and McGraw-Hill are in discussions to merger their stock market index business, which could combine the S&P 500 Index and the DJIA, according to Bloomberg. Under the deal, McGraw-Hill would have around 75% in the combined venue, with CME holding the rest, and News Corp, which owns a minor stake in the DJIA index business, to get a small stake.

CBOE Stock Exchange (CBSX) will acquire the National Stock Exchange (NSX), with the deal to close this fall pending regulatory approval.  CBOE said that it would run NSX separately from CBSX and consolidate data systems and other operations, according to a Reuters report.

LME: SGX and LSE are in a joint bid for LME, according to a Reuters source. SGX and LSE did not comment on the news. ICAP is also considering a bid for LME, which ICAP CEO Michael Spencer described as “very very interesting”. Spencer said “it’s premature at this moment to say if we’re interested or not” as “it’s quite complex to fully get and understand but it’s something worth looking at,” according to the Telegraph.

CME: NYMEX voiced concerns about the timeframe for changes to the North Sea Brent crude pricing which will be implemented from January 6. CME director of energy research and product development Daniel Brusstar said “the shift to a 25-day Brent market is probably overdue, but bringing it into the market with three months’ notice is a bit disruptive.”

Chi-X Australia, which is expected to launch at end-October, appointed David Trude as an independent director. Trude has 30 years of experience in the stockbroking industry, and has been CEO of Credit Suisse Australia and also board member of the Stockbrokers Association of Australia.

TSE will launch its new derivatives trading “Next Tdex+ System”, together with a third generation system for trading of stock and corporate bonds, on November 21.

ICAP may move its main operations away from London “extremely rapidly” should it be faced with a European financial transactions tax. ICAP CEO Michael Spencer also warned that “the whole financial market will evaporate from Europe” if the tax was introduced, according to the Financial Times.

 

Provided By: Equity Research Desk, www.erdesk.com