CBOE Volume Gains For The Ninth Consecutive Month - Rises 22% In May

The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), the world's largest options exchange, announced today that May volume totaled 27,906,821 contracts traded, an increase of 22% over the May 2003 volume of 22,928,895 contracts. This was the ninth consecutive month that CBOE registered volume gains over year-ago levels. Through the end of May, CBOE's year-to-date volume of 154,176,810 contracts traded is 41% ahead of 2003's pace.

Exchange Volume, May 2004
Total Volume
27,906,821 contracts
+22% vs year-ago (May 03)
-12% vs previous month (Apr 04)
Average Daily Volume
1,395,341 contracts
+28% vs year-ago (May 03)
-8% vs previous month (Apr 04)
Open Interest
136,867,102 contracts
+38% vs year-ago (May 03)
+5% vs previous month (Apr 04)
Year-To-Date Volume
154,176,810 contracts
+41% vs YTD 2003

May highlights at CBOE included:

• During May, volume in stock option classes (equities) rose 6% as over 15 million contracts traded, while index options rose 49% with over 12 million contracts traded.
• Options on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) were the most-actively traded index options at CBOE during May as volume totaled 4,081,048 contracts, an increase of 45% over 2003. This was the third time in CBOE history -- and all three have come within the last five months -- that SPX monthly volume has surpassed 4 million contracts.
• Index options on Nasdaq-100 Index related products continued to post strong gains in May: volume in options on the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) surged 119% and the Mini-Nasdaq-100 Index (MNX) jumped 112%. Volume in options on the Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock (QQQ) increased 69%, with CBOE holding the largest market share of total industry volume.
• A new monthly volume record was set in iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund (IWM) with 688,286 contracts traded, surpassing the previous record of 328,905 contracts in March 2004.
• Volume at CBOE Futures Exchange (CFE), launched on March 26th, set a new single-day record on May 24th, when 1,594 contracts traded. On May 18th, CFE began trading CBOE S&P 500 Three-Month Variance Futures (symbol VT). Variance futures are the second product listing at CFE, joining futures on the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX). May volume at CFE totaled 7,334 contracts, while open interest stood at 4,767 contracts at month's end.

CBOE, regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), is the creator of listed options, and the world's largest options marketplace. For additional information about the CBOE and its products, access the CBOE website at http://www.cboe.com/.