It’s a bit of a surprise to see the departure of Garry Jones from his position as LME ceo after just about three years. You might have thought that, having come from outside the metals industry, he would be getting into the full flow of his stride; but it’s not to be, as he stepped down today.
I, and many other people, have said several times that he was in a difficult position, in a way squeezed between the desires of the membership and the financial imperatives of the shareholders. It’s a bit more nuanced than that, in fact, with the members having been until relatively recently themselves the shareholders; but shareholders in a mutual enterprise of necessity have a different...