Commodity derivatives in India

Organized commodity derivatives in India started as early as 1875, barely about a decade after they started in Chicago. However, many feared that derivatives fuelled unnecessary speculation and were detrimental to the healthy functioning of the markets for the underlying commodities. As a result, after independence, commodity options trading and cash settlement of commodity futures were banned in 1952. A further blow came in 1960s when, following several years of severe draughts that forced many farmers to default on forward contracts (and even caused some suicides), forward trading was banned in many commodities considered primary or essential. Consequently, the commodities derivative markets dismantled and remained dormant for about four decades until the new millennium when the Government, in a complete change in policy, started actively encouraging the commodity derivatives market. Since 2002, the commodities futures market in India has experienced an unprecedented boom in terms of the number of modern exchanges, number of commodities allowed for derivatives trading as well as the value of futures trading in commodities, which might cross the $ 1 Trillion mark in 2006. However, there are several impediments to be overcome and issues to be decided for sustainable development of the market. This paper attempts to answer questions such as: how did India pull it off in such a short time since 2002? Is this progress sustainable and what are the obstacles that need urgent attention if the market is to realize its full potential? Why are commodity derivatives important and what could other emerging economies learn from the Indian mistakes and experience?