Emergency powers
34.—(1)  Whenever the Board has reason to believe that an emergency exists, the Board may direct a commodity market or a clearing house to take such action as it considers necessary to maintain or restore orderly trading in, or liquidation of, any commodity contract or any class of commodity contracts including but not limited to —
(a)terminating or suspending trading on a commodity market or a clearing house;
(b)confining trading to liquidation of commodity contracts or commodity futures contracts;
(c)ordering the liquidation of all positions or part thereof or the reduction in such positions;
(d)limiting trading to a specific price range;
(e)modifying trading days or hours;
(f)altering conditions of delivery;
(g)fixing the settlement price at which contracts are to be liquidated;
(h)requiring any person to act in a specified manner in relation to trading in commodity contracts or commodity futures contracts or any class of commodity contracts or commodity futures contracts;
(i)requiring additional margins for any contracts; and
(j)modifying or suspending any of the business rules of a commodity market,
[35/2007 wef 27/02/2008]
and the market or clearing house shall comply with that direction.
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(2)  Where a commodity market or a clearing house fails to comply with the direction of the Board under subsection (1) within such time as is specified by the Board, the Board may itself take action to set emergency margin levels in any commodity contract or class of commodity contracts , or to fix limits that may apply to market positions acquired in good faith prior to the date of the Board’s action or such other action, including but not limited to those specified in subsection (1), as it thinks are necessary to maintain or restore orderly trading in or liquidation of commodity contracts or any class of commodity contracts .
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(3)  In this section, “emergency” includes, in addition to threatened or actual market manipulations and corners, any act of government affecting a commodity or any other major market disturbance which prevents the market from accurately reflecting the forces of supply and demand for such commodity or any other undesirable situations or practices which in the opinion of the Board constitutes an emergency.
(4)  Without prejudice to subsection (1) where a commodity market or a clearing house exercises its powers under its rules to take emergency action, the Board may modify such emergency action, including but not limited to the setting aside of that emergency action.
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(5)  Any person who is aggrieved by any action taken by the Board, a commodity market or a clearing house under this section may appeal to the Minister whose decision shall be final.
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(6)  Notwithstanding the lodging of an appeal under subsection (5), any emergency action taken by the Board, a commodity market or a clearing house under this section shall continue to have force and effect until such time as the Minister makes a decision on the appeal.
[35/2007 wef 27/02/2008]