CBOT® Sets New Record In Exchange Open Interest

The Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) announced that the exchange set an all-new total exchange open interest record yesterday. The new record of 8,838,291 contracts surpasses the previous record of 8,819,418 set on May 22, 2003.

Open Interest represents the number of positions that have not yet been offset and closed out at the end of a trading day. It can be considered to be a measure of the use of particular futures or options on futures contract as a hedging tool. The industry also considers it to be a barometer of a contract's liquidity and the ability to get in and out of the market and put on positions of size without moving the market.