14 July 2006: A Virtual Market: a future objective to consolidate Mercamadrid

The Managing Director of Finance, Miguel Ángel Villanueva, and the Chairman of the company, Luis Blázquez, presented the project.



     · To be executed in five stages, with an investment of twelve million euros.

      · To be definitively implemented by 2008.




Mercamadrid has celebrated its 25th birthday with new challenges on the horizon.
The first is modernisation, an aim that involves the implementation of a Virtual Market to consolidate the company both nationally and internationally. The Managing Director of Finance, Miguel Ángel Villanueva, reiterated that the project is an electoral promise undertaken by the Government of the City of Madrid. "It is a consequence of globalisation, both in production and in the perishables business, and is an inevitable reality", he stated. Mercamadrid is Europe's leading market and has the necessary characteristics to take on this initiative.

Villanueva specified this future aim by presenting the company's management balance sheet for the period 2003-2005, together with the company's Chairman, Luis Blázquez. The latter confirmed that the Virtual Market shall contribute many resources.

The Director itemised Mercamadrid's conditions for the implementation of a Virtual Market: a very active market; concentrated demand in a high number of categories; fragmentation of supply and demand and, consequently, potential standardisation of relevant product categories; high price volatility; and a short product life cycle.

The project will be developed in five stages The first involves the physical market, scheduled as indicated. The second refers to virtual contracts with product identification and delivery date. Both are already being developed, involving a four-million euro investment.

The third stage (virtual contracts) and the fourth stage (futures market- the first cycle of a financial market allowing the entry of manufacturers, traders and investors) shall be achieved in 2007, with an estimated budget of four million euros. The fifth and final stage is the implementation of a Global Virtual Market, similar to current stock exchanges or product markets in international financial markets. This will be achieved in 2008, requiring an investment of four million euros. Twelve million euros shall be used in total to consolidate the company in the sector, in this era of technology.

Advantages
Some of the advantages offered by the Virtual Market are: to place Mercamadrid in the leading position in the supply market; to enable it to extend to other products and services; to increase and improve its supply; and to increase its prestige both in Spain and abroad. These advantages include Mercamadrid's expansion towards other products and services, its national and international presence, and the implementation of technology.