Nymex Records Highest-Ever Annual Volume

The New York Mercantile Exchange set an annual volume record of 109,538,831 contracts in 1999, topping the record 95,018,685 contracts traded in 1998 by more than 15%. Volume records include 89,189,928 contracts traded on the NYMEX Division, surpassing the previous record of 76,482,995 contracts traded in 1998, and 20,348,903 contracts traded on the COMEX Division. Records were also set on NYMEX ACCESS® with annual volume on the Exchange's overnight electronic trading system reaching 2,444,936 contracts, up from the record 1,884,052 contracts traded in 1998. Other Exchange volume highlight's include: A record 92,415,006 futures contracts were traded, surpassing the record 80,011,517 contracts traded in 1998, and total futures volume on NYMEX ACCESS® also set a record with 2,443,635 contracts exceeding the previous year's record of 1,877,909 contracts. Futures trading on the NYMEX Division reached 75,769,318 contracts, topping the record 64,392,578 futures contracts traded in 1998, and NYMEX Division futures volume on NYMEX ACCESS® of 2,126,059 contracts exceeded the previous year's record of 1,603,971 contracts. Total options trading established a record of 17,123,825 contracts, up from the previous year's record of 15,007,168 contracts, while options trading on the COMEX Division reached a record 3,703,215 contracts, exceeding the record of 3,610,981 contracts traded in 1987. Energy futures trading hit a record 75,126,656 contracts, topping the record 63,733,059 contracts traded in 1998, while energy futures on NYMEX ACCESS® traded a record 2,112,874 contracts, as versus the previous record of 1,598,184 contracts traded in 1998. Crude oil futures established a record of 37,860,064 contracts, exceeding the 30,495,647 contracts traded in 1998, and a record on NYMEX ACCESS®, with 1,102,448 contracts exceeding the record of 848,776 contracts traded the previous year. Crude oil options reached 8,161,976 contracts, surpassing the previous year's record of 7,448,095 contracts. As it has every year since its launch, natural gas futures broke its previous year's record of 15,978,286 contracts with volume of 19,165,096 contracts and also set a record on NYMEX ACCESS® of 805,621 contracts, up from the previous record of 569,646 contracts traded in 1998. Natural gas options reached 3,849,454 contracts, up from 3,115,765 contracts traded in 1998. Heating oil futures trading finished the year with a record volume of 9,200,703 contracts, versus the 8,986,835 contracts traded in 1994. Unleaded gasoline futures established an annual volume record of 8,701,216 contracts, up from the 7,448,095 contracts traded the previous year. Gold options trading reached 2,815,831 contracts, topping the record of 2,080,067 contracts traded in 1987. Copper futures trading established a record 2,852,962 contracts, surpassing the 2,737,967 contracts traded in 1994, and also set a record of 22,987 contracts on NYMEX ACCESS®, topping the 14,240 contracts traded the previous year. Volume on NYMEX ACCESS® for the NYMEX Division reached 2,127,360 contracts, surpassing the record 1,610,114 contracts traded the previous year. COMEX Division futures trading on NYMEX ACCESS® established a record with 317,576 contracts traded, exceeding the 273,938 contracts traded in 1998. Gold futures trading on NYMEX ACCESS® reached 195,670 contracts, breaking the record of 149,810 contracts traded the previous year. Platinum futures volume of 12,351 contracts on NYMEX ACCESS® topped the previous year's record of 5,060 contracts. Palladium futures set an annual volume record on NYMEX ACCESS® of 834 contracts exceeding the previous year's volume of 727 contracts. Aluminum futures which began trading in May 1999 traded 27,978 contracts by year's end, and 37 aluminum futures contracts were traded on NYMEX ACCESS®. Exchange President R. Patrick Thompson said, "This is the 17th record year for the Exchange in the last 20. The last year of this century saw the introduction of aluminum futures and options, Pennsylvania/New Jersey/Maryland electricity futures, and FTSE Eurotop 300 futures, as well as the signing of an electronic trading linkage agreement with the Singapore International Monetary Exchange, an upgrade to our overnight electronic trading system NYMEX ACCESS®, and the groundwork for the demutualization of the Exchange. We embark on the new millennium with great expectations in the areas of product development, trading floor technology, and global expansion, as we continue to enhance the market efficiency and customer service that has become the New York Mercantile Exchange trademark."