No agreement on leverage product

KARACHI: A committee constituted to finalise recommendations for introducing a new leverage product in the stock market ended discussions on Thursday without any agreement. However, deliberations will remain continue on Friday.

Talking to The Express Tribune after the meeting, representatives of brokers said many issues had been resolved, but that more time was needed to finalise the modalities concerning margin trading.

There were hints that differences may have emerged between some of the committee members. One of the participants, speaking on condition of anonymity, commented, “after hours of talks, things got heated up so we decided to stop the proceedings and get back on Friday.”

However, he expressed optimism that a final agreement will be hammered out in Friday’s meeting. The Leverage Product Committee was constituted on June 21 on the advice of Federal Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh. Committee members include Managing Director KSE Adnan Afridi, Chairman Mutual Funds Association Habibur Rahman and Chairman Pakistan Banks Association Shehzad Dada.

Dawood Jan Mohammad and Arif Habib were nominated on behalf of stock brokers while Farhan Malik represented the SECP. Musarrat Jabeen, Director Securities Market Division of the SECP, was appointed coordinator of the committee.

The SECP has posted salient features of the proposed product on its website for feedback. When the committee submits its final recommendations to the SECP, the regulator is expected to forward the draft to the finance ministry.

Market analysts say that this process can take another four to six weeks before the new leverage product is introduced in local bourses.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 9^th, 2010.