“One of our goals for 2005 is to increase the range of options on futures across all product groups and this is just the first of several scheduled launches,” said CME Chairman Terry Duffy. “We offer customers electronic trading on a world-class platform, CME Globex, which is available virtually around the clock. When you combine our diverse array of futures and options products with trading flexibility, you have unparalleled risk management.”
“As the E-Mini Russell 2000 is one of our most successful E-Mini products with average daily volume in 2004 up 344 percent, offering options on the E-Mini was the next logical step,” added Craig Donohue, CME’s Chief Executive Officer. “Demand for our E-Mini options has been strong as evidenced by average daily volume for our first E-Mini equity option, the S&P 500®, which was up 324 percent in 2004. With this upcoming product launch, CME now offers options on three of our most actively traded futures contracts, E-Mini S&P 500, E-Mini NASDAQ-100® and E-Mini Russell 2000.”
To help ensure liquidity in this new market, CME will select seven firms to commit to provide continuous, transparent and competitive markets for the exchange’s E-Mini Russell 2000 equity options traded on CME Globex®. In addition, the current CME Globex electronic trading customer fee waiver for the CME’s E-Mini S&P 500 and E-Mini NASDAQ-100 options on futures contracts will also be extended to E-Mini Russell 2000 options. Following are the specifications for the contract:
| Contract Size | One E-mini Russell 2000 Index futures contract |
| Contract Month | Two quarterly expiration months. Two serial expiration months |
| Globex Trading Hours | 5:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. & 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Shut down from 4:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Start up on Sunday at 5:00 p.m. |
| Minimum Tick | .10 Index points = $10.00. (Half tick .05 index points = $5.00) |
| Position limits | 5000 standard size Russell 2000 equivalents |
| Last trading day | The third Friday of contract month. 8:30 a.m. for quarterly expirations. 3:15 p.m. for serials expirations |
| Exercise price Interval | 5 index points |
CME’s E-Mini Russell 2000 options are based on the Russell 2000 Index, a capitalization-weighted index of approximately 2,000 actively traded, small-capitalization U.S. stocks. For the fourth quarter 2004, average daily volume for E-Mini Russell 2000 futures was approximately 67,000 contracts with total 2004 volume at 17,121,233 contracts. The E-Mini Russell 2000 futures have become one of the most active stock index contracts in the world.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (www.cme.com) is the largest futures exchange in the United States. As an international marketplace, CME brings together buyers and sellers on CME GLOBEX® electronic trading platform and on its trading floor. CME offers futures and options on futures primarily in four product areas: interest rates, stock indexes, foreign exchange and commodities. The exchange moved about $1.5 billion per day in settlement payments in 2004 and managed $44.1 billion in collateral deposits as of Dec. 31, 2004, including $3.2 billion in deposits for non-CME products. CME is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CME), which is part of the Russell 1000® Index.
