CME Group FX volumes down 13% MoM in August to lowest level in years

International derivatives marketplace CME Group Inc (NASDAQ:CME) has announced that August 2016 average daily volume (ADV) reached 13.8 million contracts per day, down 15% from August 2015.  CME Group year-to-date 2016 ADV through August averaged 15.5 million contracts per day, up 9%.  Total open interest was 105 million contracts at the end of August, up 15% from year-end 2015.

In foreign currency trading, the CME reported one of its slowest months in several years, with FX trading averaging just 632,000 contracts per day in August 2016, down 13% MoM from what was already a very slow July, and down 29% YoY from August 2015.

Metals volume averaged 414,000 contracts per day in August 2016, up 9 percent from August 2015. Highlights include:

• Grew Gold futures ADV 17 percent to 194,000 contracts and Silver futures ADV 17 percent to 85,000 contracts
• Achieved 14 percent growth in ADV across Ferrous products

Energy volume averaged 2.2 million contracts per day in August 2016, up 6 percent from August 2015. Highlights include:

• Achieved 24 percent growth in ADV across Natural Gas products, driven primarily by electronic Natural Gas futures and options ADV of 423,000 contracts, up 36 percent
• Grew WTI Crude Oil futures ADV 10 percent
• Achieved record electronic trading levels of WTI options and Natural Gas options, hitting 73 percent electronic and 43 percent electronic respectively
• Reached record open interest levels across Natural Gas Liquids product suite, surpassing 360,000 contracts

Agricultural volume averaged 1.2 million contracts per day in August 2016, down 11 percent from August 2015. Highlights include:

• Grew Hard Red Winter Wheat futures and options ADV 33 percent
• Achieved 21 percent growth in Soft Red Winter Wheat options ADV

Interest rate volume averaged 7.1 million contracts per day in August 2016, down 11 percent from August 2015. Highlights include:

• Grew Fed Fund futures ADV 12 percent to 134,000 contracts per day
• Reached record electronic trading level for Treasury options at 73 percent
• Achieved daily ADV record in 5-Yr Treasury Note futures and options of nearly 4 million contracts on August 25, 2016

Foreign exchange volume averaged 632,000 contracts per day in August 2016, down 29 percent from August 2015. Highlights include:

• Increased ADV of Emerging Market currency pairs futures and options, with South African Rand up 66 percent, Mexican Peso up 10 percent, and Brazilian Real up 3 percent

Equity index volume averaged 2.3 million contracts per day in August 2016, down 37 percent from August 2015. Highlights include:

• Grew E-mini S&P 500 weekly options ADV 31 percent and E-mini S&P 500 end-of-month options ADV 14 percent
• To date in 2016, 100 million equity index options have traded with nearly 40 million coming from weekly options