Tokyo - The Tokyo Commodity Exchange, Inc. (TOCOM) said it plans to launch an agricultural market in February 2013 and will accept the transfer of soybeans, azuki, corn and raw sugar contracts from the Tokyo Grain Exchange Inc.

TOCOM President and CEO Tadashi Ezaki said, "We have decided to open the agricultural commodity market in careful consideration of the profitability and the importance of having an agricultural market in Japan. We will extend our on-going efforts to attract a more diverse set of trading participants and improve the usability and reliability of the TOCOM market to agricultural contracts."

Regarding the transfer of positions and orders, open positions on the TGE market will be treated as the open positions on TOCOM's new market, the exchange said. "TOCOM will also treat valid orders accepted by TGE before the termination of trading as the orders submitted to the new market."