FTC Finalizes Oil Market Manipulation Rules

摘要

In an effort to guard US consumers against volatility and spikes in the price of gasoline, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will start to prosecute oil market manipulation on Nov. 4 through stringent new rules finalized Thursday. The measures come after about a year of planning at the FTC to monitor oil market fraud more closely (OD Aug.15,p2). The new rules come on the heels of the Commodity Fu- tures Trading Commission (CFTC) saying that it will take measures to crack down on exces- sive speculation in energy markets (OD Aug.6,p1). Moreover, the new rules from the FTC and possible ones from the CFTC have recently created a lot of uncertainty in the trading community, as market participants fear that a stricter regulatory environment will lead to de- creased liquidity and wild price swings.