Dubai Mercantile Exchange Hits Record Trading Figures
Wednesday, March 30, 2011

The Dubai Mercantile Exchange has announced that trading in its benchmark oil contract has exceeded two billion barrels of crude oil traded since its launch in 2007.

On March 27, DME released the total trading figures of its benchmark DME Oman Crude Oil Futures Contract (DME Oman), which show that cumulative trading had reached a total of 2,001,625 contracts at close of trading on March 25. According to DME, an average of 1,000 barrels per contract is therefore equivalent to more than two billion barrels of crude oil traded since its launch on June 1, 2007.

In addition, DME recently reported a 35% year-on-year increase in trading volumes and record levels of open interest, which it says reflects the growing liquidity of its flagship contract. More than 60 companies trade regularly on the exchange, and over 140m barrels of crude oil are known to have been delivered through the DME in 2010. 2011 has also proved positive thus far, with a new trading record of average daily volumes having been set.

Commenting on the figures, DME's chairman Ahmad Sharaf said he was "very pleased to report this important trading milestone to the market".

"Growing liquidity and continued organic growth at the DME compellingly demonstrate the strong fundamentals of the exchange, the importance of the DME Oman contract and its role in achieving fair value and price discovery in the world’s fastest growing commodities market. As the exchange approaches its fourth year of operations, the DME Oman continues to gain industry acceptance and consolidate its position as the global benchmark for sour crude in the East of Suez markets,” he said.

The DME was launched with the goal of bringing fair and transparent price discovery and efficient risk management to crude oil markets East of Suez. DME Oman is the sole benchmark for Oman and Dubai crude oil Official Selling Prices, the historically established markers for Middle East crude oil exports to the Asia Pacific region.