CME Group reported overall average daily volume (ADV) on the exchange in September as 15m contracts a day, 6% higher than in the same month last year. So far this year, there has been an ADV of 15.4m contracts, up 8% on 2015. But volumes have declined from their higher levels in the first quarter of this year, when there was an ADV of 16.9m contracts.
Interest rate, energy, and metals products all made year-on-year gains, with equity and foreign exchanges volumes flat and agricultural products falling 9%. The rebound in crude oil prices in September coincided with an increase of 46% in ADV of WTI crude oil futures, up to 1.2m contracts a day, the same levels as seen in the first quarter.
Figures from the Chicago Board Options Exchange showed an increase of total ADV by 25% in September, to 5.11m contracts a day. But for the year-to-date the figures were flat.
US equity options volume on Intercontinental Exchange fell from 3.6m in September 2015 to 2.82m last month, although that was a pick-up from 2.3m in August. And total equity options through ICE increased from 14.9m in September 2015 to 15.2m last month. ICE equity index derivatives recorded their busiest month of the year in September, doubling August volume to hit 664,000 contracts a day. But single stock equity derivatives were just 140,000 a day in September, the second quietest month after August (80,000).
The trend on CBOE continues to be a shift from equity to index products, with equity option volumes down 10% year-on-year and index options growing by 4%. But equity option volumes did grow by 3% from August to September.
VIX futures volumes are on the rise, with 6.35m contracts traded through September. This was 20% above September 2015's volume and 33% above August's volume.
In Europe, equity derivative instruments continue to show a marked year-on-year decline. Eurex and Euronext both released figures showing equity derivatives volumes were down on September 2015, by 16.2% at Eurex, and 16.7% at Euronext. Meanwhile equity index volumes were down by 15% at Euronext and 7.1% at Eurex.
Interest rate derivatives on Eurex did show growth in September, with 56.33m contracts traded, up 15.5% on September 2015.