LME

倫敦金屬交易所（LME）是世界首要的有色金屬交易市場，同時也是世界上最大的有色金屬交易所，成立於1877年。採用國際會員資格制，其中多於95%的交易來自海外市場。交易品種有銅、鋁、鉛、鋅、鎳和鋁合金。交易所的交易方式有公開喊價交易，此種交易在“場”內進行，也被稱作是“場內交易”，它的運行有24小時電話下單市場與LMEselect屏幕交易系統的支持。LME每天都公佈一系列官方價格，這些價格在業內被作為金屬實貨合同定價的依據。

　　倫敦金屬交易所的價格和庫存對世界範圍的有色金屬生產和銷售有著重要的影響。在19世紀中期，英國曾是世界上最大的錫和銅的生產國，隨著時間的推移，工業需求不斷增長，英國又迫切地需要從國外的礦山大量進口工業原料。在當時的條件下，由於穿越大洋運送礦砂的貨輪抵達時間沒有規律，所以金屬的價格起伏波動很大，金屬商人和消費者要面對巨大的風險，1877年、一些金屬交易商人成立了倫敦金屬交易所並建立了規範化的交易方式。從本世紀初起，倫敦金屬交易所開始公開發佈其成交價格並被廣泛作為世界金屬貿易的某準價格。世界上全部銅生產量的70％是按照倫敦金屬交易所公佈的正式牌價為基準進行貿易的。

Since being formally established in 1877 the London Metal Exchange has sought to couple innovation with maintaining its traditional strengths. A member of HKEx Group, the LME remains close to its core users by ensuring its contracts continue to meet the high expectations of industry.

LME origins: pre-1877

International trade in metals could be said to have commenced in Britain when the Romans invaded in AD43 and extracted the large deposits of copper and tin ore in Cornwall and Wales to satisfy their increasing domestic need for the production of bronze and alloys.

However, the origins of the London Metal Exchange can only be traced back as far as the opening of the Royal Exchange in London in 1571 during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. It was there that traders in metal and a range of other commodities began to meet on a regular basis. At first the traders merely dealt in physical metal for the domestic market but because Britain soon became a major exporter of metals, European merchants soon arrived to join in these activities.

In the early 19th century there were so many commodity traders, ship charterers and financiers using the Royal Exchange that it became impossible to do business. As a result, individual groups of traders set up shop in the nearby city coffee houses. The Jerusalem Coffee House, off Cornhill, became the favourite of the metal trading community and it was there that the tradition of the Ring was born. A merchant with metal to sell would draw a circle in the sawdust on the floor and call out 'Change' at which point all those wishing to trade would assemble around the circle and make their bids.