CME Group Currency Contracts Hit Record Value

The global foreign exchange derivatives markets appear "appear quite vibrant and growing to new heights of activity," with swap contracts and other over-the-counter instruments boasting a record total value of $66.6 trillion at the middle of this year, CME Group analysts Lori Aldinger and John Labuszewski wrote in a report.

The mid-year OTC total was up 5.2% from December 2011, Aldinger and Labuszewski said, citing figures released last month by the Bank for International Settlements. Exchange-traded forex derivatives, including futures and option markets, "similarly gained momentum" during the first half of 2012, they said.

Outstanding notional value, or dollar value of open interest, of all exchange-traded forex derivatives totaled $325 billion in June, up 5.5% from $308 billion in December 2011. That was still short of the previous peaks $390 billion in June 2008.

CME Group contracts account for 63% of the global exchange-traded forex derivatives market, with a notional value of $205 billion, up 7.9% from December 2011 and an all-time high. For the entire forex derivatives market, CME Group had a 0.31% share in June, up from 0.3% in December.

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