After six years of preparation, at 9 a.m. on August 12, with the sound of a gong, No. 20 rubber futures was formally listed under INE. By the end of the day, its total turnover was 48.4k lots (unilateral), or 4.779 billion yuan, total position was 11.3k lots, main contract NR2002 turnover was 43,8k lots or 4.322 billion yuan, closing price was 9820 yuan/ton, up 6.05% from the benchmark.

Market participants said that China is the world's largest consumer and importer of No. 20 rubber. The listing of No. 20 rubber futures is of great significance to promote the transformation and upgrading of the domestic rubber industry. This is the second "international platform, RMB valuation" model futures trading product launched by China after crude oil futures, fully involving foreign traders.

"No. 20 rubber is also an important raw material product of bilateral trade between China and Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia." Fang Xinghai, vice chairman of the Securities Regulatory Commission, said at the listing ceremony that No. 20 rubber futures, as the fourth open futures after crude oil, iron ore and PTA futures, was listed and traded in INE, which is to expand the opening of China's commodity futures market and promote the construction of Shanghai International Financial Center.

Pricing Tools for Consumer Centers

China is not only the largest consumer and importer of natural rubber in the world, but also an important producer. Its rubber planting area is more than 17.6 million mu, ranking third in the world, and its annual output is more than 830,000 tons, ranking fourth in the world.

No. 20 rubber is the main basic raw material of tire industry. In recent years, with the vigorous development of automobile industry, China has become the world's largest tire manufacturer, the rubber industry structure has undergone important changes, No. 20 rubber has become the most representative of the global natural rubber industry. At present, China is the largest rubber consumer in the world, accounting for more than 40% of global consumption.

China is also the largest importer of No. 20 rubber. After 2008, China has gradually emerged as one of the global rubber trade centers. In 2018, China will continue to lead the growth of global rubber consumption. China imported 5.66 million tons of natural rubber, accounting for 40% of global consumption in that year. China imports No.20 rubber mainly from Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, accounting for 80% of China's No.20 rubber imports.

Due to the lack of efficient pricing tools for a long time, the market of No. 20 rubber fluctuated greatly. From 2010 to 2018, the highest price of No. 20 rubber reached 38205 yuan/ton and the lowest price reached 7185 yuan/ton, with an average annual fluctuation of 48%. No. 20 rubber futures can provide price risk management tools for rubber industry chain enterprises, help enterprises lock in costs, keep profits, and improve the competitiveness of natural rubber industry in China.

"Based on the huge market scale of China's natural rubber, listing No. 20 rubber futures is not only conducive to the construction of the pricing system of the global natural rubber market, serving the development of China's rubber industry, helping China move from a big tire manufacturing country to a strong manufacturing country, serving China's rubber enterprises 'going out’ but also conducive to promoting China's futures market opening to the outside world and further expanding the influence of China's natural rubber futures market to serve the country's ‘one belt and one road’ initiative.” Jiang Yan, chairman of the board of directors of SHFE, said.

"SHFE should strengthen the cultivation of domestic and foreign markets, make No. 20 rubber futures become the "vane" of pricing in the international rubber market as soon as possible, and promote the structural reform of the supply side of China's rubber industry.” Fang Xinghai said.

Helping Rubber Enterprises Internationalize

China's rubber industry is a highly internationalized industry. Over the past decade, China's leading natural rubber enterprises have invested in natural rubber planting and processing industries in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos in Southeast Asia, and Ivory Coast and Cameroon in Africa. It is estimated that the natural rubber resources it participates in overseas operations are 2.5 times of domestic resources. At the same time, in order to overcome the shortage of natural rubber resources in China, some tire enterprises have established many rubber plantations and tire processing plants abroad.

"No. 20 rubber is also an important raw material product of bilateral trade between China and Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia." Fang Xinghai said that under this background, listing No.20 rubber futures and introducing foreign traders into the market at the outset is a logical thing. This is of great significance for carrying out the "one belt and one road" initiative, enhancing the pricing influence of China in the global natural rubber market, and serving the upstream and downstream industries of the industrial chain.

It is worth noting that No. 20 rubber futures will replicate the relevant policies of crude oil futures, namely, international platform, net price trading, bonded delivery and RMB pricing.

According to the rubber futures contract provided by INE and related business rules, the code of the No. 20 rubber futures contract is NR, the trading unit is 10 tons/lot, and the quotation unit is yuan/ton.

Like crude oil futures, No. 20 rubber futures will be fully introduced to foreign investors. Special foreign non-brokerage participants and overseas customers may use foreign exchange funds as deposits. At present, the currencies of energy regulations in SHFE are US dollars, with a discount rate of 0.95. At the same time, assets such as standard warehouse receipts can also be used as margin.

On the first day of opening, overseas legal household R1 International Pte. Ltd. (R1 International) entrusted Xinhu Futures Co., Ltd. through Shirui Financial Services Co., Ltd. to participate in the trading of China No. 20 rubber futures contract NR2002 and the first batch of transactions.

No. 20 rubber futures provides new hedging and arbitrage tools for R1 International, enriching the risk management tool portfolio of R1 International in the process of trade with Chinese enterprises. Sandana Dass, RI International CEO, said: "China is the world's largest rubber consumer and major producer. I believe the No. 20 rubber futures contract launched by INE will reflect the transparent, efficient and highly liquid price discovery mechanism of the rubber industry and benefit many participants in the global rubber industry."

"The introduction of No. 20 rubber plays a very important role in building the pricing system of the whole natural rubber industry. It can guarantee the development of the whole rubber industry and provide us with a suitable hedge tool for overseas development," said Chen Ming, chairman of Guangken Rubber Group.

Promoting the Development of Commodity Futures by Opening-up and Accelerating the Opening-up

The pace of opening to the outside world of the commodity market is accelerating. No.20 rubber is the fourth domestic specific product after crude oil, iron ore futures and PTA futures in China.

"In the future, SHFE will take the smooth operation of crude oil futures and the successful listing of No. 20 rubber futures as an opportunity, promote reform through opening up, and take the following substantive measures to make greater strides in internationalization." Jiang Yan said that, first, the Institute will continue to improve its business mechanism, strengthen market promotion, further enhance overseas participation, and improve the crude oil and No. 20 rubber futures market; second, continue to expand the internationalization of futures varieties and promote the internationalization of existing varieties, including the development of low-sulfur fuel oil futures contracts and copper futures internationalization, and so on; third, we should improve the overseas layout, explore the establishment of delivery warehouses and increase the registered brands in the countries along the belt and road; fourth, enhance the ability of cross-border supervision, improve the supervision and coordination mechanism, and further promote cooperation with overseas exchanges and trade associations.

Fang Xinghai also said at the ceremony on that day that promoting reform and development through opening up is a valuable experience of China's reform and opening up over the past 40 years and a principle that must be followed in developing financial markets.

"Next, we will work in opening up the commodity futures market around the following aspects. First, we will steadily expand the scope of specific commodities, study and promote more commodity futures and options as specific varieties, enhance the international influence of China's commodity prices, and provide price reference and risk management tools for cross-border operations of Chinese enterprises. Second, explore a variety of open modes and explore diversified open paths. Third, we should optimize the rules and regulations to further reduce the institutional transaction costs of foreign investors. Fourth, enhance cross-border regulatory capacity, strengthen communication and cooperation with oversea regulatory agencies, and maintain market order under open conditions. Fifth, we should be brave enough to participate in international competition, strengthen the promotion to international markets, and further enhance the participation of foreign investors.” Fang Xinghai said.

中国证券报：上期所“落子”20号胶期货 商品国际化再下一城
经历了六年的筹备，8月12日上午9点，随着一声锣响，20号胶期货在上海期货交易所旗下上期能源正式挂牌交易。截至当日收盘，其总成交4.84万手（单边），成交额为47.79亿元，总持仓量为1.13万手，主力合约NR2002成交4.38万手，成交额为43.22亿元，收盘价为9820元/吨，较基准上涨6.05%。

市场人士表示，中国是全球第一大20号胶消费国和进口国，20号胶期货上市，对促进国内橡胶产业转型升级意义重大。这是继原油期货后，我国推出的第二只“国际平台、人民币计价”模式的期货交易品种，全面引入境外交易者参与。

“20号胶还是我国与泰国、印度尼西亚、马来西亚等‘一带一路’国家双边贸易的重要原材料产品，天然具有国际化属性。”证监会副主席方星海在上市仪式上表示，20号胶期货作为继原油、铁矿石、PTA期货之后的第四个对外开放期货品种，在上海期货交易所国际能源交易中心挂牌交易，是我国商品期货市场扩大对外开放、推进上海国际金融中心建设的又一重要举措。

消费中心的定价工具

我国既是世界上最大的天然橡胶消费国和进口国，又是重要的生产国，植胶面积达1760余万亩，排名世界第三；年产量83万多吨，排名世界第四。

20号胶是轮胎产业的主要基础原料。近年来，随着汽车工业的蓬勃发展，我国已成为全球第一大轮胎制造国，橡胶产业结构发生了重要变化，20号胶成为全球天然橡胶产业最具代表性的品种。我国目前是全球第一大20号胶消费国，消费量占全球比重超40%。

我国同时也是20号胶第一大进口国。2008年后，中国逐步崛起成为全球橡胶贸易中心之一。2018年，我国继续引领全球橡胶消费的增长。我国进口天然橡胶566万吨，占当年全球消费量的40%。我国进口的20号胶主要来自泰国、马来西亚和印度尼西亚，占我国20号胶进口量的80%。

由于长期缺乏高效定价工具，20号胶市场波动巨大，2010年至2018年期间，20号胶最高价达38205元/吨，最低价至7185元/吨，年度平均波幅高达48%。20号胶期货，可为橡胶产业链企业提供价格风险管理的工具，帮助企业锁定成本、守住利润，提高我国天然橡胶产业竞争力。

“基于我国天然橡胶自身庞大的市场规模，上市20号胶期货既有利于构建全球天然橡胶市场的定价体系，服务我国橡胶工业的发展，助力我国从轮胎制造大国迈向制造强国，服务我国天胶企业‘走出去’，又有利于推进我国期货市场对外开放，进一步扩大我国天然橡胶期货市场影响力，是服务国家‘一带一路’倡议的有力举措。”上期所理事长姜岩表示。

“上期所要加大境内外市场培育力度，尽快使20号胶期货成为国际橡胶市场定价的‘风向标’、促进我国橡胶产业供给侧结构性改革的‘推进器’。”方星海表示。

助力橡胶企业国际化

我国橡胶产业是一个高度国际化的产业。近十余年，我国天然橡胶龙头企业在东南亚的泰国、马来西亚、印度尼西亚、越南、柬埔寨、缅甸、老挝等，非洲的科特迪瓦、喀麦隆等国家投资天然橡胶种植加工业。据测算，其在海外参与经营的天然橡胶资源已是国内资源的2.5倍。同时，为克服国内天然橡胶资源的短缺，部分轮胎企业也先后到国外建立多个橡胶园和轮胎加工厂。

“20号胶还是我国与泰国、印度尼西亚、马来西亚等‘一带一路’国家双边贸易的重要原材料产品，天然具有国际化属性。”方星海表示，在此背景下，上市20号胶期货并一开始就引入境外交易者参与，是一件顺理成章的事，这对践行“一带一路”倡议、提升我国在全球天然橡胶市场的定价影响力、服务产业链上下游企业都具有重要意义。

值得注意的是，20号胶期货将复制原油期货相关政策，即国际平台、净价交易、保税交割、人民币计价。

根据上期能源提供的20号胶期货合约及相关业务规则，20号胶期货合约代码为NR，交易单位为10吨/手，报价单位为元/吨。

与原油期货一样，20号胶期货也将全面引入境外投资者。境外特殊非经纪参与者、境外客户可使用外汇资金作为保证金。而目前上期能源规定的币种为美元，折扣率为0.95。同时，标准仓单等资产也可作为保证金。

开市首日，境外法人户R1国际有限公司（R1 International Pte. Ltd.，以下简称“R1国际”）通过时瑞金融服务有限公司委托期货公司进行交易，参与中国20号胶期货NR2002合约交易并首批成交。

20号胶期货为R1国际提供新的对冲和套利工具，丰富了R1国际在与中国企业贸易过程中的风险管理工具组合。RI国际CEO Sandana Dass表示：“中国是世界上最大的橡胶消费国和主要产地，我相信此次上海国际能源交易中心推出的20号胶期货合约，将反映出橡胶行业透明、高效和高流动性的价格发现机制，并惠及全球众多橡胶产业参与者。”

“20号胶推出为我们构建整个天然橡胶的定价体系有着非常重要的作用，能够对我们整个橡胶工业的发展有一个全产业链的保障，也给我们在海外的发展提供一个契合的避险工具”广垦橡胶集团董事长陈茗表示。

以开放促发展 商品期货加速开放

商品市场对外开放的步伐不断加速，20号胶已经是我国继原油、铁矿石期货、PTA期货之后的第四个境内特定品种。

“未来，上期所将以原油期货的平稳运行和20号胶期货的成功上市为契机，以开放促改革，通过以下的实质举措，迈开国际化的更大步伐。”姜岩表示，第一，上期所将继续完善业务机制，加强市场推广，进一步提升境外参与度，做优原油和20号胶期货市场；第二，持续扩大期货品种国际化，研究推进现有品种的国际化，包括开发低硫燃料油期货合约和铜期货国际化等；第三，推进境外布局，探索在“一带一路”沿线国家设立交割仓库和增加注册品牌；第四，提升跨境监管能力，完善监管协作机制，进一步推进与境外交易所、行业协会的合作。

方星海在当天的仪式上也表示，以开放促改革、促发展是我国改革开放40年的宝贵经验，也是发展金融市场必须遵循的原则。

“接下来，我们将围绕以下几个方面做好商品期货市场的对外开放工作。一是稳步扩大特定品种范围，研究推动将更多的商品期货和商品期权列为特定品种，提升我国商品价格的国际影响力，为我国企业跨境经营提供价格参考和风险管理工具。二是探索多种开放模式，开拓多元化的开放路径。三是优化规则制度，进一步降低境外投资者的制度性交易成本。四是提升跨境监管能力，加强与境外监管机构的沟通与合作，维护好开放条件下的市场秩序。五是勇于参加国际竞争，加大国际市场推介力度，进一步提升境外投资者参与度。”方星海说。