News File

TIFFE's trading volume up 15% in 2000

(January 5,2001)

TOKYO, January 5, 2000 - The Tokyo International Financial Futures Exchange (TIFFE) announced today that trading volume in 2000 was 17,188,227, up 15.1% from 1999 due to the removal of Bank of Japan's so called "zero interest rate policy" and the introduction of half tick pricing* .

Three-month Euroyen futures, TIFFE's flagship contract, actively traded as expectation to terminate zero rate policy soared in the first half of 2000. Especially in June, monthly volume recorded over 2.2 million contracts. In August, the price of Euroyen futures fell and the trading become more active, reflecting the abolishment of zero rate policy. From September to the year-end, the price gradually rose as stock prices continued to be weakened in Japan and the USA. To the contrary, the price of Dec. 2000 contract fell as cash money market rates, such as TIBOR, rose reflecting market participants' unawareness for the introduction of Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system on the 4 January 2001.

Calendar spreads on Three-month Euroyen futures** also traded actively as the yield curve movement. Trading of Calendar spreads set a monthly volume record in September at 43,614 contracts, and also set an annual record of 151,904 contracts in 2000.




(Notes)

*Half tick pricing means the change of the minimum price fluctuation from 1 tick to 0.5 tick. With this new pricing method, TIFFE members and investors are able to conduct hedging and other complex transactions in more precise and efficient ways.

**TIFFE's function "Calendar spreads on Three-month Euroyen futures" allows to execute sell order of one contract month and buy order of other contract month simultaneously. All matched Calendar spread trades shall be converted into each contract month trade of Euroyen futures. Calendar spread trading is widely used as one of the popular trading strategy, as well as rolling-over of positions.


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For more information, please contact:
Marketing and Research Section
E-mail : info@tiffe.or.jp
URL: http://www.tiffe.or.jp


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