The country's first commodity exchange is poised to commence operations at the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) by December this year, offering new investment avenues for essentials including gold.

"We are gearing up to launch the commodity exchange by December. Technical development, including hardware and software negotiations, has already been completed. We have also appointed a foreign consultant to facilitate the launch," stated CSE Chairman Asif Ibrahim to the Daily Sun on Tuesday.

A commodities exchange is a legal entity responsible for establishing and enforcing rules and procedures for trading standardised commodity contracts and investment products.