CFTC Press Release 4473-00

CFTC News Release 4473-00

For Release November 14, 2000

CFTC Approves the Sydney Futures Exchange's SPI 200 Futures Contract Based on the Standard & Poors/Australian Stock Exchange 200 Index for Offer or Sale in the U.S.

WASHINGTON -- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Office of General Counsel (OGC) on November 13, 2000 issued a no-action letter permitting the Sydney Futures Exchange's SPI (Share Price Index) 200 futures contract based on the Standard & Poors/Australian Stock Exchange 200 Index (S&P/ASX 200 Index) to be offered or sold in the United States.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index is a broad-based, modified capitalization-weighted composite index consisting of the 200 most highly-capitalized and actively-traded stocks currently listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX). Based on data supplied by the SFE, the total market capitalization of the S&P/ASX 200 Index was approximately U.S. $403 billion as of December 31, 1999.

For information on foreign exchange-traded stock index futures contracts pending no-action approval with the CFTC's OGC, see the Foreign Instrument Approvals & Exemptions Backgrounder at www.cftc.gov/opa/backgrounder/part30.htm.

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