October 15 this year was a day of remarkable fortunes for two prominent executing venues. With CME Group having trounced its previous daily trading record, exchanges and clearing houses conglomerate Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) announced that ICE Futures U.S. reported record daily volume in the ICE U.S. Dollar Index (USDX) futures contract of 118,291 contracts on October 15, 2014. The previous daily volume record of 116,372 contracts was established on June 6, 2013.
ICE USDX futures and options trade exclusively on ICE Futures U.S. Introduced in 1985, ICE’s USDX futures contract is the global benchmark for the value of the U.S. dollar and is the world’s most heavily traded currency index futures contract.
For North America’s institutional trading sector, there has most definitely been light at the end of a very long tunnel.
A clear indicator of the dramatic volatility swings is depicted here, after nearly a month of stability in the 1.26-1.27 range, e.g. the 5-day option.
For the full announcement from ICE, click here.
Chart courtesy of CNBC.