CME Group Inc (NASDAQ:CME), the derivatives marketplace, has just added its voice to the chorus of companies reporting robust operating metrics for March 2015. Data that was published earlier today showed March was one of the strongest months in the history of the company in terms of trading currency and energy contracts.
The average daily Forex volumes amounted to 1,087,000 in March 2015, up by massive 44% against the 755,000 contracts per day, recorded in February 2015. The rise was rather impressive in annual terms too, as FX volumes in March 2015 outpaced the result seen in March 2014 by 27%. The average daily notional value of FX contracts traded in March was $112 billion.
The solid results seen in March 2015 contributed to the strong performance of the Forex segment for the first quarter of the new year as a whole. Forex volumes in the first three months of 2015 were up by 17% against the equivalent period a year ago, the company said.
Looking at the performance of other segments, let’s note that CME Group energy volume averaged 1.9 million contracts per day, 28% higher than in March 2014. The first-quarter energy volumes grew by 26% compared with the first-quarter 2014 and reached a record high.
CME Group interest rate volume averaged 6.5 million contracts per day in March 2015, which is 8% lower than in March 2014.
Eurodollar futures volume averaged 2.6 million contracts per day, marking a decline of 6% from March 2014. Eurodollar options volume averaged 959,000 contracts per day, 5% higher than in March last year.
Treasury futures volume averaged 2.4 million contracts per day, down 13% compared with March 2014. Treasury options volume averaged 481,000 contracts per day, down 20% from March 2014.
Average daily volumes across all segments were 13.7 million contracts in March 2015, down by 3% against a year earlier. Total volume for March 2015 was 302 million contracts, of which 88% was traded electronically.
First-quarter 2015 volume averaged 15.0 million contracts per day, marking a rise of 10% from the first-quarter of 2014, and represented the second highest quarterly volume in the history of the company.
To view CME Group’s detailed operating metrics for March 2015, click here.