Eurex Is Launching Two New Stock Options - Attractiveness Of Product Portfolio Enhanced With Options On ASML Holding And Sulzer AG

Eurex, the international derivatives market, is continuing to expand its product portfolio in equity derivatives: As of 21 January 2002, the world's leading derivatives market will offer two new equity options, on ASML Holding and Sulzer AG. As in all options at Eurex, the options on ASML and Sulzer will be supported by professional market-making to ensure the necessary underlying liquidity in the new products. With the new options on ASML and Sulzer, a total of 107 international equity options from 17 different sectors will then be tradable at Eurex. Last year, the seven equity options in the technology sector made up the largest share of the segment volume, with 27.3 million contracts traded, followed by the telecommunications sector (eight equity options with 23.5 million contracts traded) and equity options in the banks sector (21.7 million contracts in nine options).

The equity options segment at Eurex was again especially successful last year: A total of some 133 million contracts were traded in the options on individual equities in 2001. This corresponds to an increase of 48 percent against the previous year. Eurex achieved high growth rates in internationally high-liquidity stock options in particular. Volume in the option on Nokia increased 300 percent to 14.6 million contracts traded; Eurex has about two-thirds of the worldwide exchange-traded volume in this product. The turnover in options on Deutsche Telekom doubled to some 22 million contracts, about 92 percent of the worldwide exchange-traded volume in Deutsche Telekom options. In the DaimlerChrysler option, Eurex recorded a 70 percent increase in turnover to 10.3 million contracts and 99 percent of the volume traded in this product worldwide.