Canola futures contract volume rose 27.9% from December 2003 at 196,094 contracts. Feed wheat futures contract volume increased 26.7% from the volumes recorded last year at 5,359 contracts. Western barley futures and flaxseed futures contract volumes declined from a year ago with 8,478 contracts and 15 contracts, respectively, being traded during December 2004. There were 116 canola options contracts traded during the month.
Total futures and options contract volume for December 2004 was 210,062 contracts, representing an increase of 21.9% from the level recorded in December 2003 and 44.1% higher than the level recorded in November 2004.
Futures contract volume for the crop year to-date totaled 816,905 contracts at the end of December 2004. This level of trade is 7.0% higher than the crop year to-date futures contract volume of a year ago. The combined futures and options volume for the crop year to-date stood at 822,167 contracts at the end of December 2004, representing an increase of 4.8% from year ago levels.
On December 20, 2004 WCE became the first commodity futures and options exchange in North America to fully convert from open outcry to electronic trading. Volume of 11,680 futures and options contracts (excluding EFRs, EFPs, deliveries and exercises) was recorded on that day and exceeded the then average total daily volume for December 2004 to-date of 10,803 contracts.
At the end of December total open interest was 80,595 contracts, up 23.4% from the level of open interest recorded a year ago.
