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LONDON, April 21 (Reuters) - The London Metal Exchange
(LME) said on Friday it had appointed John Williamson, currently
a non-executive director, as interim chairman from the end of
April, when current Chair Gay Huey Evans steps down.
Williamson's appointment comes as the world's largest and
oldest metals forum grapples with slumping nickel volumes after
the chaos in March 2022 when the LME suspended nickel trading
for more than a week.
"Recent years have presented challenges for both the
industry and the business but I am certain of the LME's
continued role as a vital global marketplace for the pricing and
trading of metals," Williamson said in the statement.
Williamson served on the board of Hong Kong Exchanges and
Clearing , owner of the 146-year old LME, from 2008 to
2021 as non-executive director. He was appointed to the LME
board in September 2021.
Metal industry sources are surprised that Williamson's
appointment is on an interim basis, which they say creates
uncertainty during a tumultuous time.
The LME declined to comment on why the appointment was on an
interim basis.
Williamson will oversee the exchange as it comes under
scrutiny from Britain's financial watchdog and lawsuits for the
trades the LME cancelled on March 8, 2022 when nickel prices doubled to a record above $100,000 a tonne in a few
hours.
A lawsuit brought by Elliott Associates and Jane Street
Global Trading against the LME for cancelling nickel trades will
be heard in a London court on June 20-22.
Britain's Financial Conduct Authority in March launched an
unprecedented probe into potential misconduct over the nickel
crisis last year, which further damaged the LME's already
bruised reputation.
Since March 2022, the exchange has introduced daily price
limits to control volatility of prices of nickel and other
metals such as copper and aluminium trading on the exchange.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt and Pratima Desai; Editing by John
Stonestreet, Robert Birsel and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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