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These newly selected firms join HGI Holdings, who began making markets in CME’s E-mini S&P 500 equity options in November 2003. As market makers, they will provide continuous, transparent and competitive markets for CME E-mini S&P 500 equity options traded on GLOBEX. In return for their assistance in creating additional liquidity for all E-mini S&P 500 equity options customers, CME will provide its market makers with additional bandwidth.
“Trading volume in CME’s E-mini S&P 500 equity options on futures contract has more than doubled since last year,” said Tina Lemieux, Director, Equity Products. “By adding more market makers committed to growing the volume in this market, we will be able to provide even more liquidity for our customers.”
Launched in 1997, CME’s E-mini futures contracts are among the fastest growing and most actively traded contracts in CME history. Year to date, trading volume in CME’s E-mini equity index products have averaged more than 1 million contracts per day, an increase of 14 percent from 2003.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (www.cme.com) is the largest futures exchange in theUnited States. As an international marketplace, CME brings together buyers and sellers on its trading floors and GLOBEX® electronic trading platform. CME offers futures and options on futures primarily in four product areas: interest rates, stock indexes, foreign exchange and commodities. The exchange moved about $1.6 billion per day in settlement payments in the first half of 2004 and managed $39.1 billion in collateral deposits as of June 30, 2004. CME is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CME), which is part of the Russell 1000® Index.
