August 4, 2011

The World's Most Liquid Benchmark: Light Sweet Crude Oil (WTI) Futures and Options

Open interest in WTI Crude Oil futures (CL), the world's most liquid crude oil benchmark, continued to show a robust, double-digit increase compared to the previous year, with growth of 24.4 percent as of Aug. 1, 2011. Total weekly volume reached 2.4 million contracts traded last week. July's daily volume averaged 578,557 contracts traded.

The WTI Crude Oil Options Complex attained open interest of 7,016,948 contracts as of Aug. 1, 2011, while total weekly volume reached 567,032 contracts last week. Daily volume, meanwhile, averaged 133,166 contracts over July.

To learn more about global benchmark Light Sweet Crude Oil (WTI) futures and options, please be sure to visit www.cmegroup.com/wti, where you will find a wealth of educational resources and up-to-the minute quote information.

Crude Oil Highlight: Short-Term Options Trading Activity Kicks Off

The Exchange's innovative C01-C31: Short-Term Crude Oil Options contract saw its first trading activity on Monday, Aug. 1, 2011, with a volume of 100 contracts traded.

 Learn more about this valuable risk management tool

Crude Oil Contract Launch: One Micro Crude Oil and One Micro Brent Crude Oil Futures

Effective trade date Monday Aug. 8, 2011, the Exchange will list two financially settled Micro Crude Oil contracts for trading on the New York trading floor and for submission for clearing through CME ClearPort. The Exchange will allow the exchange for related position (EFRP) transactions to be submitted through CME ClearPort per Exchange Rule 538. The contracts are:

• MCL: Micro Crude Oil Futures
• MBZ: Micro Brent Crude Oil Penultimate Financial Futures

For rates and fees, please read Special Executive Report 5857

The contracts will be listed with NYMEX, and subject to the rules and regulations of NYMEX and Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc.

For more information, please contact Daniel Brusstar, +1 212 299 2604.

Refined Product Delisting: New York Harbor Heating Oil Futures to Be Replaced with ULSD Futures

Due to regulatory change to lower sulfur heating oil specifications in New York State, the Exchange will discontinue the HO: New York Harbor Heating Oil Futures contract in April 2013, and will list only three additional months through April 2013. The contract will then be replaced by the LH: New York Harbor Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) Futures contract, which is listed concurrently.

For rates and fees, read Special Executive Report 5854

For more information, please contact Daniel Brusstar, +1 212 299 2604.

Events: Advanced Energy Trading Simulation Courses

Looking for exposure to the latest electronic trading tools to navigate the oil, gas, or electricity trading infrastructure? The latest series of professional training courses, offered by global energy market thought leaders from Tulane University's A. B. Freeman School of Business, the Energy Management Institute, and CME Group, are the perfect opportunity for you to hone and test your skills using the most realistic trading simulations available.

Each two-day course covers everything from industry fundamentals to electronic trading while focusing on the trading strategies businesses use to manage risk and maximize returns. Instructors include professors from the Freeman School of Business, professionals with CME Group, and energy experts from EMI.

Reserve your seat here to get unparalleled training in energy trading.

UPCOMING COURSE DETAILS

New Orleans:

Chicago:

Events: School of Futures Comes to Europe

If you make your living on the business side of virtually any industry, you owe it to yourself to gain a firm grasp of futures and options fundamentals. The CME Group School of Futures, a comprehensive, four-day program created by CME Group experts, is the perfect opportunity for students of all ages to master the concepts, mechanics, history and strategies that define today's derivatives markets, from the basics of futures, options, and centralized clearing upward. Interactive discussions and hands-on trading sessions will deepen and solidify your command of these crucial financial tools in all of the various asset classes and product complexes, including Energy, Metals, Equity Indices, FX, Interest Rates, and Agriculture.

Space is limited. Enroll today.

DETAILS

London: 7 - 10 Nov., 2011
Registration Fee: £1,000

Access the Monthly Energy Update - Chart Book to view a global trading summary of energy markets, including product highlights, average daily volume, open interest, and historical volatility.

July Energy Trading Highlights

 For more information on Exchange energy products, please visit cmegroup.com/energy, or contact one of the following Exchange representatives:

Margin Erosion Opportunities for Energy Traders

If you trade financially settled energy contracts, your margin requirements decrease, or erode, as the contract month progresses, if the contracts you trade settle according to an average of daily prices during the settlement month. We ask for margin on only the remaining risk, as a service to you, so you can use that capital more efficiently in other ways. CME Group is the only exchange for energy trading and clearing that offers this feature. Visit our Margin Requirements page to view full initial and eroded maintenance margins for individual contracts, and to learn more about this benefit.

Energy Unit Conversion Calculator Available on www.cmegroup.com

Need to know how to convert $/Barrel to $/mmBtu? Want to double-check a 3-2-1 crack spread calculation? Try our online Conversion Calculator, which features the most frequently used conversions for trading in crude oil, refined products, natural gas, coal, crack spreads, spark spreads, and more.

Professional Energy Market Commentary on www.cmegroup.com

Looking for energy market commentary, from the experts, updated throughout the day?

Be sure to check out the Energy Market Commentary, where you will find experienced perspectives to help you make smart energy trading decisions. Commentators include:

• Dominick Chirichella of the Energy Management Institute
• Stephen Schork of the Schork Report
• Dean Rogers and Cynthia Kase of Kase and Co.
• Experts from CME Group Energy

Daily commentaries provide a recap of each product's traded price activity, an analysis of the factors that influenced price activity, a recap of any reports released that day, and a pre-market look ahead at the next day's schedule.

Be sure to bookmark our market commentary section and take advantage of this convenient and comprehensive resource for a variety of asset classes - available at no cost!

 View Energy Market Commentary

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About CME Group

As the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, CME Group is where the world comes to manage risk. CME Group exchanges offer the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes, including futures and options based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities, metals, weather and real estate. CME Group brings buyers and sellers together through the CME Globex electronic trading platform and trading facilities in New York and Chicago. CME Group also operates CME Clearing, one of the largest central counterparty clearing services in the world, which provides clearing and settlement services for exchange-traded contracts, as well as for over-the-counter derivatives transactions through CME ClearPort.

More information on CME Group Products:

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