Dubai Mercantile Exchange Limited (DME), a premier energy futures and commodities exchange, has set new trading records in January with a total of 71,396 contracts traded during the month.

The DME said its average daily volumes (ADV) hit the highest since the launch of the exchange building on the 35 per cent year-on-year increase in trading levels reported for 2010.

The ADV for the DME Oman Crude Oil Futures Contract (DME Oman) in January stood at 3,570 contracts (equivalent to 3.5 million barrels of oil per day), with a record total of 71,396 contracts traded throughout the month, said a DME statement.

January’s performance indicators demonstrate continuing confidence in the DME Oman contract as the most efficient price discovery and risk management tool for the East of Suez crude oil markets, it added.

Today, more than 50 companies trade regularly on the exchange while in excess of 140 million barrels of crude oil were delivered through the DME during 2010, confirming the status of DME Oman as the world’s largest physically delivered crude oil futures contract.

The introduction of these new products enables the DME to provide a mechanism for industry participants to manage price risk more effectively in the Middle East and Asia Pacific markets while also offering investment options to new participants looking for exposure to Middle Eastern crude oil bound for East of Suez markets.

Commenting on January’s performance, Thomas Leaver, DME chief executive, said, "This is a positive start to the year, particularly following such strong and continued growth from 2010."

"Thanks to DME’s growing customer base, stakeholder support and employee dedication, we continue to build on our growing target market providing a freely traded, open, transparent and regulated market space."

"We will continue to work diligently  over the coming months to further consolidate our position as the accepted benchmark for crude oil in the Middle East and Asia," he added.

The DME was launched in June 2007 with the goal of bringing fair and transparent price discovery and efficient risk management to East of Suez, the world's fastest growing commodities market and the largest crude oil supply/demand corridor in the world.

Today, DME Oman is the explicit and sole benchmark for Oman and Dubai crude oil Official Selling Prices (OSP), the historically established markers for Middle East crude oil exports to Asia Pacific.-TradeArabia News Service