The Intercontinental Exchange has hit a record for open interest, the latest record for the US group in what has been a busy summer of trading.

The Atlanta-based group said it hit an open interest record of 48.1 million contracts across its many futures and options on August 25.

The exchange said the open interest record was partly down to increasing demand for ICE’s natural gas hedging products as gas prices surged early this week.

ICE's North American natural gas futures and options hit record open interest of 23 million lots on August 25, up a tenth on last year. Open interest in Henry Hub futures and options was up 28% compared to late August last year.

An increase in open interest suggests the increased use of derivatives by corporates and commercial hedgers whereas a spike in trading volumes is normally due to high-frequency traders and market-makers.

ICE said it has also seen strong demand for its interest rate futures and options products in the US and UK amid growing inflationary pressure post-Covid.

The exchange said its open interest in interest rate futures and options is up 26% year-on-year at approximately 29.5 million, with open interest in Sterling and SONIA futures and options up 29% and 200% on last year respectively.

ICE said last week its open interest in derivatives that reference the Sterling Overnight Index Average (SONIA) rate had surpassed one million lots, marking another milestone in the adoption of the UK alternative to Libor.

In ICE’s soft commodities segment, open interest in coffee is up 17%, cotton is up 28% and cocoa is up 22%.

The exchange’s environmental complex is also busy, up 21% on last year, with EUA futures and options open interest up 28% year-on-year.

ICE said the price of a UK carbon allowance hit a record in Wednesday’s auction, marking the latest trading milestone for the nascent market.