LIFFE Trades £51 Trillion Worth Of Contracts In Ten Months Beating Last Year's Total Annual Value

The London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE) traded £51 trillion worth of contracts in the first ten months of 2000, 15% up on the same period in 1999 and more than the £50 trillion nominal value traded in the whole of last year. In October 2000 average daily nominal value amounted to £231 billion (?335 billion) and total value amounted to £5,078 billion (?7,363 billion), up 38% on October 1999. LIFFE maintained its position as the world's largest electronic exchange by value.

LIFFE traded 10,622,672 futures and options contracts during the month of October representing an average daily volume of 482,849 contracts.

LIFFE's Chief Executive, Hugh Freedberg said, "Trading in short term interest rate products saw continued growth, with LIFFE's flagship, contract the Three Month Euribor future up 62% year to date.

On 17 October LIFFE's Mini FTSE 100 index future was launched. The contract got off to an encouraging start with a particularly good quality of market. Trading in all equity products increased for the tenth consecutive month this year, up overall by 24% compared to 1999, with individual equity options up 45%."

The following record was set in October 2000:

• Equity options set a new daily open interest record of 997,394 on 16 October (previous daily open interest record of 991,079 set on 13 October 2000)