During the week the futures product traded 11,598,300 shares (25,902 lots) across the full range of 25 stocks, representing £81,239,777, creating a strong foundation for continued growth.
"This is the strongest start to trading for a new product that I can remember" said Bill Russell, Director of Equity Derivatives Sales at Salomon Smith Barney. "We're extremely optimistic about LIFFE's Universal Stock Futures and enthusiastic about the early progress. We believe, with time, they will become a mainstream financial instrument for institutional and retail investors alike. As traditional cash traders become more comfortable with the products and understand them, there will be a lot more liquidity in the USFs in the future."
Traders, representing the full range of market participants, have been extremely positive, forecasting an increase in volume in coming weeks. The number of LIFFE members entering this market is growing incrementally. Open interest has continued to build throughout the week and stood at 9,469 contracts on 2 February.
John Foyle, LIFFE's Deputy Chief Executive said: "We've had a very positive start. Universal Stock Futures are a completely new business and we have had significant interest from the market. Interest in the US stocks has been particularly enthusiastic with active trading even before the US market opens. Volume will continue to increase as the market becomes more familiar with the product. We are already working on the release of the next phase of stocks."
