LIFFE to launch eight new Individual Equity share options

The London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE) has announced that it will increase its range of UK equity options by more than 10% by listing eight new individual equity options from Monday 5th July 1999. The new options will be traded on LIFFE's electronic trading system LIFFE CONNECT™, joining LIFFE's current 74 individual equity options which have been trading on LIFFE CONNECT™ since their migration from floor to screen trading on 30 November 1998. LIFFE's individual equity options have seen a year to date increase of 20% in volume traded since switching from open outcry trading to LIFFE CONNECT™ and there has been an increase in the numbers of LIFFE members participating in the market. Guy Simpkin, LIFFE's Director of Product Development, said "We continually review the equity options listed at LIFFE and are keen to ensure that we capitalise on opportunities presented by the successful migration to LIFFE CONNEC T™, to continue to list additional contracts to satisfy market demand". LIFFE's new individual equity options, all on companies in the FTSE 100 index, are as follows: Bank of Scotland (Governor & Co of); Legal & General Group plc; National Grid Group plc; Rentokil Initial plc; Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc; Securicor plc; Telewest Communications plc; Whitbread plc.