CME Group (NASDAQ:CME), the world's leading derivatives marketplace, announced on Thursday that its suite of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) weekly options has reached record average daily volume in August, with 12,291 contracts. This year has seen all the top five record months for Weekly WTI Crude Oil options.
The growing interest in these options is attributed to global crude oil market participants navigating various supply and demand factors. Peter Keavey, Global Head of Energy and Environmental Products at CME Group, noted that the average daily volume for Friday Weekly WTI options has reached a new high of 9,285 contracts year-to-date, up 74%. Additionally, the total combined volume for Monday and Wednesday expirations has already surpassed 100,000 contracts since their launch just over a month ago on July 31.
The company expanded its WTI Crude Oil options to include Monday and Wednesday expiries on July 31. This expansion has been well-received by the industry with a single day volume record of 14,241 contracts traded on September 1, 2023. Since the launch, there have been over 930 unique trading users, including corporate clients, hedge funds, and banks.
Friday expiries are also gaining traction as market participants increasingly turn to shorter dated options to manage risk. A single day volume record of 28,029 contracts was traded on September 1, 2023. The number of firms trading Friday expiries is up 17% from 2022, with over 6,100 unique trading users year-to-date. Interestingly, 34% of the volume originates outside of the U.S.
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