Monthly total market volume for May 2002 rose by 15 percent when compared to May 2001. Volumes increased from 2,235,390 lots to 2,578,776 lots.
IPE Brent futures, in May 2002, traded 1,876,019 lots, equivalent to 1.8 billion barrels of crude oil. This compared to 1,582,606 lots traded in May 2001 represents an increase of 18.5 percent. For IPE Gas Oil futures and Natural Gas Futures, previous records were set in 2001. IPE Gas Oil traded 628,742 lots in May 2002 beating the previous record of 593,318 lots traded in May 2001 - an increase of 6 percent. IPE Natural Gas futures rose 30% when it traded 50,275 lots in May 2002 compared to the 38,385 lots traded in May 2001.
"We are pleased with the strong trading activity across all product categories on the IPE," said Stephen Gutteridge, business development director. "The strong trading activity reflects the continued confidence of our members and customers in IPE as a regulated market."
