In Breif: Peso Futures Trading Proposal on Fast Track

WASHINGTON - Mary Schapiro, chairwoman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, said the agency expects to move quickly on a proposal by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to list Mexican peso futures and options.

Ms. Schapiro said the CFTC normally approves contract filings within 90 days of their submission, unless there are comments that need to be looked into. The exchange filed for approval of the contract in early January.

Mexican peso futures and options previously were traded on the CME from May 1972 until November 1985, when Mexico's central bank prohibited transfer of pesos for foreign currency in purely financial transactions.

Since the restriction prevented physical peso deliveries, the exchange delisted the contract.

The new contract will offer risk management capability to investors in peso-denominated securities and transactions, and it will be cash-settled rather than physically delivered, like the CME's other currency contracts.

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