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Nymex To Change Crude Oil, Heating Oil, & Gasoline Trading Hours On Days Of API/DOE Announcements

Date 09/01/2003

The board of directors of the New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc., last night voted to amend the trading hours for trading in crude oil, heating oil, and gasoline futures and options on the day of the weekly supply announcement by the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the Department of Energy (DOE).

On those days, NYMEX ACCESS® trading in Brent and light, sweet crude oil, heating oil, and gasoline futures will end at 8 AM and open outcry trading in Brent and light sweet crude oil futures, options, and calendar spread options and Brent/WTI spread options will begin at 8:45 AM. Open outcry trading in heating oil and gasoline futures, options, calendar spread options, and crack spread options will begin at 8:50 AM.

Trading in the e-miNY(sm) crude oil futures contract on GLOBEX®, the electronic trading platform of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc., will halt at 8 AM and resume at 8:45 AM on those days.

The API, which previously made its announcements at approximately 4:30 PM on Tuesdays, changed the time to 9 AM, Wednesdays, to coincide with the DOE announcement, beginning yesterday.

These trading hours will shift when the supply announcements are made on other days of the week due to holidays. The change will remain in place until there is a change in the timing of these announcements, which the Exchange has requested.

Exchange President J. Robert Collins, Jr., said, "We believe it is critical that market participants have the immediate ability to react to this critical information through the world's most liquid energy trading forum."