NYBOT Coffee, Cocoa, Russell And Cotton Products Set New Open Interest Records

Four products at the New York Board of Trade® (NYBOT®) have recently set records in open interest, or the number of outstanding contracts, including:

• The Coffee “C”® futures contract (symbol KC), which set an open interest record on March 22, 2005, of 123,010 contracts, replacing the previous record of 122,361 contracts from March 18, 2005. Coffee options (symbol KC) also set a record on March 10, 2005, of 170,487 contracts, replacing the March 9, 2005 record of 165,975 contracts.

• NYBOT’s cocoa futures (symbol CC) reached an open interest record of 153,696 contracts on March 18, 2005. The previous high was 153,165 contracts set March 17, 2005.

• The Russell 1000® Index options contract (symbol R) established a record 30,108 contracts on March 17, 2005, with 29,761 contracts being the previous record set on March 16, 2005.

• Cotton No. 2SM futures (symbol CT) on March 16, 2005, set a new open interest record of 126,127 contracts, replacing the previous high of 124,394 contracts established March 15, 2005.

C. Harry Falk, NYBOT President and CEO, said: “These new open interest records are proof that our markets continue to experience substantial growth throughout 2005. We are very pleased with this recent activity and that the needs of the changing marketplace continue to be met in the world’s premier marketplace for soft commodities.”

The New York Board of Trade (NYBOT) is New York’s original futures exchange, where the world trades food, fiber and financial products. For well over a century, the New York Board of Trade has provided reliability, integrity and security in a global marketplace for cocoa, coffee, cotton, ethanol, orange juice and sugar, as well as currency and index futures and options. Information about the New York Board of Trade can be found at www.nybot.com and www.nybotlive.com.