China China Hong Kong's China Merchants Group has made an informal bid to buy London's Baltic Exchange, becoming the latest contender for the business that has been the hub of the global shipping market for centuries, two sources told Reuters.

The bid was made by the China China Hong Kong headquartered but the Chinese state-owned conglomerate, according to the sources. In February, the Singapore Exchange also put in a bid.

"China Merchants is the latest and certainly, with such a massive group, it shows how this is heating up," one source said.

An acquisition of the Baltic, which was founded in 1744, would give the China Merchants ownership of the industry's benchmark indices - which could be further commercialized - and greater access to the multi-billion dollar freight derivatives market.

Source: World Maritime news.com