CBOT Ends 2001 With Second Highest Volume Year In Exchange History Trading 260,333,070 Contracts; December Volume At 19,856,126 Contracts Traded

The Chicago Board of Trade(CBOT) today announced total 2001 year-end volume of 260,333,070 contracts, an increase of 11.5% from 2000. This represents the second highest yearly volume total at the CBOT, exceeded only in the year 1998 when over 281 million contracts were traded at the exchange.

CBOT Chairman Nickolas J. Neubauer said, "This growth is a tribute to our members and customers, and reflects our renewed focus on customer service and on developing new products to increase trading volume and member opportunity via both the open auction and electronic trading platforms. Our diversified product mix was strengthened in 2001 with the launch of ten-year interest rate swap futures, the anchor for our credit product complex, as well as futures on the AIG-DowSMCommodity Index. We will continue this effort in February with the scheduled launch of the CBOT" X-Fund futures contract, as will our commitment to provide integrity, liquidity and flexibility to all users of our markets."

With December trading volume at 19,856,126 contracts traded, up 27.8% from December 2000, the exchange set 11 new open outcry volume records for the year. Volume on the CBOT's electronic trading platform hit 5,017,559 for December 2001, up 180.7% from December 2000; volume totaled 52,559,308 contracts for 2001, up 238.6% from 2000.