The new contracts join a suite of other Russell indexes already trading on NYBOT's Index market. Since 1999, NYBOT has traded the Russell 1000® Index Regular futures and options contracts and the Russell 1000 Index Mini futures contract since 2001. On April 17, 2003, NYBOT and the Frank Russell Company, a global leader in multi-manager investing and owners of the Russell indexes, entered into an agreement which gave the exchange the right to trade futures and options contracts based on a total of 21 Russell U.S. equity indexes. Several of the new Russell contracts have already begun trading, such as the Russell 1000® Index Growth and Value contracts, since May 2, 2003.
The Russell 2000 Index measures the performance of the 2,000 smallest companies in the Russell 3000 index, which represents approximately 8% of the total market capitalization of the Russell 3000 Index. As of June 30, 2003, the average market-cap was $443.5 million.
The Russell 3000 Index measures the performance of the 3,000 largest U.S. companies based on total market capitalization, which represents approximately 98% of the investable U.S. equity market. As of June 30, 2003, the average market-cap was $3.7 billion.
Both the Russell 2000 and 3000 futures contracts will have a contract size of $500 x Index and will be cash settled. The minimum tick value for both futures and options is $25.00. Contract specifications are available at www.nybot.com, in the Market Information section.
Frank Russell Company, a global leader in multi-manager investment services, provides investment products and services in more than 35 countries. Russell manages $67 billion in assets and advises clients worldwide representing $1.6 trillion. Founded in 1936, Russell is a subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual and is headquartered in Tacoma, Wash., with additional offices in New York, Toronto, London, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Auckland and Tokyo. For more information, go to www.russell.com.
The New York Board of Trade (NYBOT) is the parent company of the Coffee, Sugar and Cocoa Exchange, Inc. (CSCE) and the New York Cotton Exchange (NYCE). Through its two exchanges, NYBOT offers an expanding range of agricultural and financial products. Information about the New York Board of Trade can be found at www.nybot.com and www.nybotlive.com.
