CBOE Volume Continues To Climb In February

Total exchange-wide volume at the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) reached 27,105,120 contracts (18,000,968 calls and 9,104,152 puts) in February representing an increase of 74% over year ago levels. Exchange-wide open interest was 94% higher than the close of February last year, standing at 37,083,375 contracts (22,037,393 calls and 15,045,982 puts) at month's end. Average daily volume for the month of February at the CBOE was 1,355,256 contracts representing a 65% increase over February 1999 level's of 819,798 contracts. Stock option volume at CBOE totaled 22,513,704 contracts (15,874,892 calls and 6,638,812 puts) for the month of February, representing an impressive increase of 101% over the year ago levels of 11,179,391 contracts (7,729,640 calls and 3,449,751 puts) for February of 1999. Average daily volume in CBOE's longer-term stock options (LEAPS®) was 71,535 contracts. Total volume in equity LEAPS for the month was 1,430,690 contracts, an increase of 99% over February last year. Total index option volume for February at CBOE was 4,582,457 contracts (2,122,306 calls and 2,460,151 puts) an increase of 4% over year ago levels. Trading in S&P 500® Index options (SPX) reached 2,016,711 contracts (1,115,530 calls and 901,181 puts) a 32% increase over year ago levels. Open interest in SPX stood at 2,231,060 contracts. Trading volume for the month of February in S&P 100® Index options (OEX) was 1,789,761 contracts (834,517 calls and 955,244 puts. Total volume in Options on the Dow Jones Industrial AverageSM (DJX) was 476,988 contracts (283,349 calls and 193,639 puts). Average daily volume is 23,849 contracts. Volume in the Nasdaq 100 Index® Options (NDX) in February was 141,970 contracts (47,548 calls and 94,422 puts). This represents a 45% increase over February 1999. CBOE, the world's largest options marketplace and the creator of listed options, is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). For additional information about the CBOE and its products, access the CBOE site on the World Wide Web at http://www.cboe.com.