SIMEX Contracts Break Records in February; Average Volume Grows 10%

The Singapore International Monetary Exchange (SIMEX) has announced a 10.2% growth in average daily volume for the month of February 1999 (109,455 contracts) compared to February 1998 (99,358 contracts). At the same time, record-breaking performances were chalked up by the MSCI Taiwan Stock Index futures, MSCI Singapore Index (SiMSCI) futures and the new Euroyen Libor futures contracts. One of the star performers last month was the MSCI Taiwan Stock Index futures, which traded a record daily volume of 18,434 contracts on 23 February, bringing the average daily volume for that month to an all-time-high of 10,100 contracts. Trading interest in the SiMSCI futures contract also expanded in the month of February, with a record total trading volume of 14,976 contracts, as well as a record average daily volume of 832 contracts. In addition, both daily volume and open interest registered all-time highs - 1,678 and 2,420 contracts respectively - on 24 February. SIMEX's newest addition to its comprehensive product range - the 3-Month Euroyen Libor futures contract - has become the most successfully launched contract. It was already trading an average of 8,161 contracts daily during its first week (22 to 26 February), while open interest has built up to 31,056 contracts as at 1 March 1999. In view of the substantial liquidity that has already been built up in the futures contract, SIMEX has decided to launch the options contracts on Euroyen Libor futures on 8 March 1999. The new Euroyen futures contract is settled using the London inter-bank offered rate (Libor) computed by the British Bankers' Association (BBA). It is actively traded side by side with the existing SIMEX Euroyen futures, which is settled using the Tokyo inter-bank offered rate (Tibor) computed by the Japanese Bankers Association (JBA). Together, the two SIMEX Euroyen contracts facilitate the trading of Libor/Tibor spreads and provide the most comprehensive yen hedging instruments to the market.