By Tom Burnett CFA
In its October 2 and November 3 press releases, the Options Clearing Corporation in Chicago announced that trading volume through September 30, 2020, had surpassed previous annual record volumes. Total volume of cleared listed options trades reached 5.34 billion contracts through September. The previous year’s total volume was 4.98 billion contracts. The record year had been 2018 when total trading volume was 5.24 billion contracts. The September volume alone was 670 million contracts, the second highest monthly trading volume ever recorded.
Trading in October continued the record pace. October volume was 636 million contracts, the fourth highest monthly trading volume ever. Through October, total cleared listed option trading volume was 6.09 billion contracts, a new record for any year. It is clear that the volatile market swings (March sell off, June-July rally) have motivated traders and investors to utilize listed option trading and hedging strategies at a record pace.
Tom Burnett CFA is Director of Research