139,897 contracts were traded over the day. As Australian options contracts equal 1000 shares per contract, this is the equivalent of 139 million shares. This follows five successive record years of growth despite the tech boom and bust, and the uncertainty of the past two years.
The dominant contracts were in Newscorp, Telstra, Coles Myer, Westpac, and S&P ASX200™ Index Options. Newscorp was by far the dominant stock with 36% of all contracts.
Factors contributing to the record volumes include:
- Increased interest from retail investors, accounting for nearly 70% of volume and over 280 new accounts opening each month.
- The growth of Index Options by 232% this year, with investors taking advantage of exposure to a share portfolio of the top 200 stocks on the market with one easy transaction.
- Current market climate enticing investors to look for alternative investments including exchange-traded that can provide both risk management and generate additional income.
