Europe

Eurex traded 78m contracts during May, up 31.5% year-on-year and bringing year-to-date volume to 422m contracts, 40% higher than the same period in 2002. Equity-based derivatives, in particular, traded 32m contracts, with 18.6m of those in index products and 14.7m in equity options. The exchange said that its Dutch and French equity options showed further growth during the month, with Dutch equity options trading five times more than in May last year and achieving a market share of 10%. Monthly volume in French equity options reached a new high of 95,000 for Eurex, a six-fold growth on the previous year, and also resulting in a 10% share of the market measured in terms of the nominal value of the equity options traded; however, the period 2 to 6 June set a new weekly record for the exchange, with 56,791 contracts taking a 13.1% market share.

Meanwhile, Euronext Liffe traded over 57m contracts during May, bringing the year-to-date volume to 288m. Equity index products were up 23% in volume terms year-onyear, with 12.6m contracts traded in May (67.7m year-to-date). While individual equity products, which include equity futures, equity options and options on tracker  products, were down 44% year-on-year, with 18m contracts traded (102.6m year-to-date).

US

Chicago Board of Trade saw its highest monthly volume in history, with 43.8m contracts traded, up by 50% on May last year. Year-to-date volume reached more than 169m, up 36% on 2002. At Chicago Mercantile Exchange, meanwhile, the overall monthly total reached 55.4m, an increase of 29% on last year, resulting in a year-to-date total of 251.4m contracts.

However, in US equity options, International Securities Exchange (ISE) remained the largest market, trading 20.1m equity option  contracts during May, up 69% from 11.9m in the same period last year. This brings ISE's equity options market share to 29%.

Chicago Board Options Exchange's volume increased by 8% in May to 22.9m contracts, driven by a 24% increase in total index option volume, while equity options volume remained largely unchanged from year-ago levels at 14.3m, but a 6% increase on April.

US single stock futures, meanwhile, appear to be increasing. OneChicago's May volume figures reached more than 101,000, a 28% increase on April, with open interest standing at 90,967 at month-end. NQLX, on the other hand, traded 50,077 contracts during the same period, with open interest at 47,206, an increase of 27% on the previous month-end level.

Anuszka Ransley