CME Group declared a force majeure at one of its New York precious metals depositories yesterday, run by bullion dealer and major coin dealer Manfra, Tordella and Brooks (MTB), due to “operational limitations” posed by Hurricane Sandy.
MTB has “operational limitations” following Hurricane Sandy and can’t load gold bullion, platinum bullion or palladium bullion, CME Group Inc., the parent of the Comex and New York Mercantile Exchange, said today in a statement.
MTB must provide holders with metal at Brinks Inc. in New York to meet current outstanding warrants in relevant delivery periods with compensation for costs, Chicago-based CME said.
The CME said that MTB will not be able to deliver metal as the lower Manhattan company deals with "operational limitations" almost a month after the arrival of Hurricane Sandy.
MTB is one of five depositories licensed to deliver gold against CME's benchmark 100-troy ounce gold contract, held 29,276 troy ounces of gold and 33,000 troy ounces of palladium as of Nov. 23, according to data from CME subsidiary Comex.
In a notice to customers on Monday, CME declared force majeure for the facility, a contract clause that frees parties from liability due to an event outside of their control.
CME said that individuals holding MTB warrants or certificates for a specific lot of metal stored in the depository, may receive gold delivered from Brinks Co. (BCO) in New York. MTB is responsible for any additional costs incurred by customers receiving metal from Brinks, CME said.
"This shouldn't have a material impact on the way market participants are doing business," a CME spokesman said. "They'll still contact MTB if they want to take delivery on contracts," and MTB will arrange for delivery through Brinks according to Dow Jones Newswires.
In a notice posted to its website dated Nov. 12, MTB said the firm "sustained substantial damages" following Hurricane Sandy's arrival in New York City on Oct. 29, and had curtailed its operations.
The force majeure will remain in effect until further notice from the exchange, the CME said. The delivery period for CME's December-delivery precious metals futures begins on Friday.
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