Press

Eurex, the international derivatives exchange, completed the year 2002 with a record volume of 801 million contracts traded, surpassing the previous year's total by 19 percent and continuing to expand its position as the world's leading derivatives exchange. The turnover figures for December reflect the rising volumes for the year overall: In the last month of the year just ended, 54 million contracts were traded and cleared at Eurex, an increase of more than 23 percent over the number traded in December the year before (44 million contracts).

As in previous months, the highest-turnover segment in December was capital market products with 25.9 million contracts traded, roughly half of the overall Eurex turnover. The leading contract was again the Euro Bund future with a volume of 11 million contracts traded, over 7 percent higher than in December 2001. In the Euro Bobl future, 6.9 million contracts were traded in December, up 17 percent from the December 2001 figure. The total volume traded in this segment for the year 2002 came to 446 million contracts, which is 9 percent above the previous year's total of 409 million contracts.

In equity-based derivatives, over 28 million contracts were traded in December, comprising 18.8 million contracts in the equity index derivatives segment and 9.3 million contracts in the equity options segment. The turnover in equity index derivatives was 60 percent higher than the year before, while volume in equity options grew 8 percent. In the recently launched futures and options on EXTF, some 60,000 contracts changed hands in December. In November 2002, their first month of trading, 3,000 contracts were traded at Eurex.

The leading contract in the equity index derivatives again in December was the future on the DJ Euro STOXX 50 index with 8.9 million contracts traded, 120 percent higher than the year before. Volume in the option on the DJ Euro STOXX 50 index was even 213 percent higher, with 3.5 million contracts traded, and as in the month before, was the highest index option product, ahead of the DAX option with 2.45 million contracts. With a total of 211 million index contracts traded, the Eurex turnover in 2002 was some 60 percent higher than in 2001.

In the equity options, the option on shares of Deutsche Telekom, with 1.1 million contracts traded, was ahead of the option on Nokia (some 1 million contracts) and the option on SAP (about 900,000 contracts). For the year as a whole, the Nokia option ranked highest in volume with some 19.6 million contracts traded, followed by Deutsche Telekom with 16.6 million contracts and the option on Deutsche Bank with 11.2 million contracts.

EUREX Trading Volumes since 1990
(in contracts traded)