CME Members Approve Transfer Of Deutsche Mark Futures To GLOBEX®2

Members of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) voted overwhelmingly today to transfer trading in the Deutsche mark futures contract onto the exchange's GLOBEX2 electronic trading system during regular trading hours. The move reflects the continuing shift in world currency markets triggered by European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). The vote, weighted based on membership divisions, with nearly 91 percent in favor of the proposal, authorizes the CME Board of Directors to transfer to GLOBEX2 any foreign currency futures or options contracts if the elimination of the underlying currency due to EMU is imminent. "With this vote, the membership has taken a very positive step that will further strengthen our new Euro FX contract, which has already been one of our most successful currency products," said CME Chairman Scott Gordon. In connection with this year's launch of EMU, which will completely merge the currencies of 11 European nations into a single unified currency by July 1, 2002, the CME began trading Euro FX futures and options contracts this year. As of Jan. 1 of this year, the values of each of the currencies of each of the 11 countries participating became irrevocably fixed to the value of the euro. Since Jan. 4, Deutsche mark futures and Euro FX futures have traded in the same pit in the CME's currency complex. The contracts initially benefited from trading in close proximity, but a continued shift of business into the Euro FX and worldwide acceptance of the new euro currency led to support for trading the Deutsche mark contract on the GLOBEX2 system, according to Yra Harris, an independent currency trader and Chairman of the CME's Foreign Currency Committee. The Euro FX has generally been trading greater volume and maintaining larger open interest levels than the Deutsche mark contract for the past several months. Since the expiration of the June 1999 contracts, volume in Euro FX futures has been two to three times greater than that of the Deutsche mark contract. The CME will install GLOBEX2 electronic trading workstations in and around the Euro FX futures and options pits in order to facilitate the needs of floor traders who may wish to continue trading the Deutsche mark futures. Deutsche mark options will continue to be traded via open outcry. The CME's Euro FX contract is sized at 125,000 euro, and has roughly twice the notional value of the CME's Deutsche mark futures contract. The CME also trades three Euro FX cross-rate contracts against the Japanese yen, the Swiss franc and the British pound.