CME Group January Volume Sets New Record of 29.6 Million Contracts, Up 15% Year Over Year

Rhea-AI Summary

CME Group (NYSE:CME) reported a record January average daily volume (ADV) of 29.6 million contracts, up 15% year-over-year from January 2025's 25.7 million. Key January ADV: Interest Rate 13.9M, Equity Index 7.3M, Energy 3.6M, Metals 2.2M.

Notable product records: Metals ADV +218%, record Micro Silver, Micro Copper, Micro Gold; record Henry Hub Natural Gas futures/options; Cryptocurrency ADV +106% ($10.8B notional).

Positive

• Record January ADV of 29.6 million contracts (+15% YoY)
• Interest Rate ADV of 13.9 million (+18% YoY)
• Metals ADV increased 218% with record Micro Silver and Micro Copper ADV
• Cryptocurrency ADV increased 106% (notional $10.8 billion)
• International ADV rose 19% to 9.2 million contracts
• BrokerTec U.S. Repo ADNV up 20% to $382 billion

Negative

• None.

Key Figures

January 2026 ADV: 29.6 million contracts Prior January ADV record: 25.7 million contracts Interest Rate ADV: 13.9 million contracts +5 more

8 metrics

January 2026 ADV 29.6 million contracts Highest January average daily volume, up 15% year-over-year

Prior January ADV record 25.7 million contracts Previous January record set in 2025

Interest Rate ADV 13.9 million contracts January 2026 interest rate products ADV

Equity Index ADV 7.3 million contracts January 2026 equity index products ADV

Metals ADV change 218% increase January 2026 metals ADV vs January 2025

Cryptocurrency ADV 408,000 contracts January 2026 crypto ADV, $10.8 billion notional

Cryptocurrency ADV change 106% increase January 2026 vs January 2025 cryptocurrency ADV

International ADV 9.2 million contracts January 2026 international ADV, up 19% year-over-year

Market Reality Check

Price: $293.07 Vol: Volume 1,998,156 is sligh...

normal vol

$293.07 Last Close

Volume Volume 1,998,156 is slightly below the 20-day average of 2,059,582 (relative volume 0.97x). normal

Technical Price at 290.77 trades above the 200-day MA of 273.14 and sits 1.02% below the 52-week high.

Peers on Argus

CME rose 0.59% while key peers were mixed: ICE -0.47%, COIN -1.02%, NDAQ -0.38%,...

CME rose 0.59% while key peers were mixed: ICE -0.47%, COIN -1.02%, NDAQ -0.38%, SPGI -0.02%, MCO +0.17%. No peers appeared in the momentum scanner, suggesting a stock-specific reaction to CME’s record January volumes.

Historical Context

5 past events · Latest: Jan 28 (Positive)

Pattern 5 events

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Jan 28	Brand partnership	Positive	+0.6%	Multiyear jersey patch and branding deal with Chicago White Sox.
Jan 27	Volume record	Positive	+0.1%	New single-day record in metals contracts driven by micro products.
Jan 21	Volume record	Positive	-0.3%	Record natural gas futures and options volumes across Henry Hub and TTF.
Jan 15	ADV update	Positive	-1.0%	Record August 2024 ADV across asset classes with strong rate volumes.
Jan 15	Macro sentiment	Negative	-1.0%	Agricultural economy barometer and related indices declined to low levels.

Pattern Detected

Recent CME volume and trading-related announcements often skew positive, but price reactions have been modest and occasionally negative, indicating that record activity metrics do not consistently translate into near-term share gains.

Recent Company History

Over the last several months, CME has repeatedly highlighted strong activity metrics and brand initiatives. On Jan 28, 2026, it announced a jersey patch sponsorship with the Chicago White Sox, which saw a mild 0.55% gain. Earlier in January, CME reported new records in metals and natural gas trading volumes, with mixed price reactions (+0.15%, -0.30%). A prior record-driven ADV update and an agriculture barometer release on Jan 15, 2026 coincided with a -0.96% move, underscoring inconsistent sensitivity to activity data.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement highlights CME’s highest-ever January average daily volume of 29.6 million contrac...

Analysis

This announcement highlights CME’s highest-ever January average daily volume of 29.6 million contracts, a 15% year-over-year increase, with notable gains in interest rate, metals, cryptocurrency, and international trading. Recent history shows multiple record-volume updates across asset classes, along with stable brand and regulatory disclosures. Investors following this story may watch future monthly statistics, product-level growth such as micro contracts, and how sustained activity trends feed into upcoming financial results.

Key Terms

average daily volume, notional, futures, options, +1 more

5 terms

average daily volume financial

"today reported its highest January average daily volume (ADV) on record"

Average daily volume is the typical number of shares or contracts of a security traded each day, calculated by averaging daily trading amounts over a recent period. It matters to investors because it indicates how easy it is to buy or sell without moving the price—like traffic on a road: high volume is a busy freeway that lets many cars pass smoothly, while low volume can make large orders cause big price changes and higher costs.

notional financial

"Cryptocurrency ADV of 408,000 contracts ($10.8 billion notional)"

Notional refers to the reference amount used to calculate payments or measure the size of a financial contract, without representing actual cash that changes hands. For investors it shows the scale of exposure — like the mileage used to compute a car rental bill even though you don’t buy the miles themselves — and helps compare risk and potential gains or losses across instruments.

futures financial

"enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and OTC markets"

A futures contract is a standardized agreement to buy or sell an asset (like a commodity, currency, or stock index) at a fixed price on a specific future date. Think of it like locking in the price of a house today for a move-in years from now: it lets buyers and sellers protect themselves against price swings or bet on which way prices will move. For investors, futures matter because they provide a cheap way to manage risk, amplify returns through leverage, and signal market expectations that can move cash prices.

options financial

"enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and OTC markets"

Options are contracts that give investors the right to buy or sell an asset at a specific price within a certain time frame. They function like a reservation or a ticket that allows for potential profit or protection against price changes, making them useful tools for managing investment risks or speculating on market movements.

central counterparty clearing regulatory

"operates one of the world's leading central counterparty clearing providers"

A central counterparty clearing (CCP) is a specialized financial intermediary that sits between buyers and sellers of securities or derivatives, becoming the buyer to every seller and the seller to every buyer to guarantee trades are completed. Like an insurance-backed referee, it manages the risk of someone failing to pay by requiring collateral, pooling resources, and simplifying many trades into smaller net payments, which helps investors by lowering the chance of loss from a counterparty default and improving market stability and liquidity.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

• Record ADV in metals products
• Record ADV in Henry Hub Natural Gas, Micro Silver and Micro Copper contracts
• Highest-ever January ADV in interest rate and energy products

CHICAGO, Feb. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, today reported its highest January average daily volume (ADV) on record at 29.6 million contracts, an increase of 15% year-over-year. The company's previous January ADV record was set in 2025 with 25.7 million contracts. Market statistics are available in greater detail at https://cmegroupinc.gcs-web.com/monthly-volume.

January 2026 ADV across asset classes includes:

• Interest Rate ADV of 13.9 million contracts
• Equity Index ADV of 7.3 million contracts
• Energy ADV of 3.6 million contracts
• Metals ADV of 2.2 million contracts
• Agricultural ADV of 1.6 million contracts
• Foreign Exchange ADV of 991,000 contracts
• Cryptocurrency ADV of 408,000 contracts ($10.8 billion notional)

Additional January 2026 product highlights compared to January 2025:

• Interest Rate ADV increased 18%
  • U.S. Treasury futures and options ADV increased 15% to 7.7 million contracts
  • SOFR futures and options ADV increased 21% to 5.6 million contracts
  • 30 Day Fed Funds futures ADV increased 59% to 504,000 contracts
• Metals ADV increased 218%
  • Record Micro Silver futures ADV of 438,000 contracts
  • Record 1-Ounce Gold futures ADV of 115,000 contracts
  • Record Micro Copper futures ADV of 48,000 contracts
  • Micro Gold futures ADV increased 472% to 693,000 contracts
• Equity Index ADV increased 4%
  • Micro E-mini Nasdaq 100 futures ADV increased 10% to 1.8 million contracts
• Energy ADV increased 11%
  • Record Henry Hub Natural Gas futures ADV of 851,000 contracts
  • Record Henry Hub Natural Gas options ADV of 403,000 contracts
  • WTI Crude Oil options ADV increased 26% to 273,000 contracts
• Foreign Exchange ADV
  • Japanese Yen futures ADV increased 32% to 204,000 contracts
  • Foreign Exchange options ADV increased 9% to 69,000 contracts
• Cryptocurrency ADV increased 106%
  • Micro Ether futures ADV increased 69% to 116,000 contracts
  • Ether futures ADV increased 67% to 20,000 contracts
• Micro Products ADV
  • Micro E-mini Equity Index futures and options ADV of 3.2 million contracts represented 43.9% of overall Equity Index ADV and Micro WTI Crude Oil futures accounted for 2% of overall Energy ADV
• International ADV increased 19% to 9.2 million contracts, with EMEA ADV up 18% to 6.7 million contracts and APAC ADV up 25% to 2.2 million contracts
• BrokerTec U.S. Repo average daily notional value (ADNV) increased 20% to $382 billion and European Repo ADNV increased 11% to €346 billion
• EBS Spot FX ADNV increased 13% to $75 billion and FX Link ADV increased 78% to 59,000 contracts ($5.7 billion notional per leg)

As the world's leading derivatives marketplace, CME Group (www.cmegroup.com) enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and OTC markets, optimize portfolios, and analyze data – empowering market participants worldwide to efficiently manage risk and capture opportunities. CME Group exchanges offer the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, cryptocurrencies, energy, agricultural products and metals.  The company offers futures and options on futures trading through the CME Globex platform, fixed income trading via BrokerTec and foreign exchange trading on the EBS platform.  In addition, it operates one of the world's leading central counterparty clearing providers, CME Clearing. 

CME Group, the Globe logo, CME, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Globex, and E-mini are trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc.  CBOT and Chicago Board of Trade are trademarks of Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, Inc.  NYMEX, New York Mercantile Exchange and ClearPort are trademarks of New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc.  COMEX is a trademark of Commodity Exchange, Inc. BrokerTec is a trademark of BrokerTec Americas LLC and EBS is a trademark of EBS Group LTD. The S&P 500 Index is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC ("S&P DJI"). "S&P®", "S&P 500®", "SPY®", "SPX®", US 500 and The 500 are trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC; Dow Jones®, DJIA® and Dow Jones Industrial Average are service and/or trademarks of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. These trademarks have been licensed for use by Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. Futures contracts based on the S&P 500 Index are not sponsored, endorsed, marketed, or promoted by S&P DJI, and S&P DJI makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in such products. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 

CME-G

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cme-group-january-volume-sets-new-record-of-29-6-million-contracts-up-15-year-over-year-302677118.html

SOURCE CME Group

FAQ

What did CME (CME) report for January 2026 average daily volume?

CME reported a record January ADV of 29.6 million contracts, up 15% year-over-year. According to the company, January 2026 ADV surpassed the prior January record of 25.7 million contracts set in 2025, driven by strength across interest rates, metals and crypto.

How did interest rate trading perform for CME in January 2026 (CME)?

Interest Rate ADV was 13.9 million contracts, an 18% increase year-over-year. According to the company, U.S. Treasury futures/options ADV rose 15% to 7.7 million and SOFR futures/options ADV rose 21% to 5.6 million.

Which metals and micro products set records at CME in January 2026 (CME)?

Metals ADV increased 218% with record Micro Silver, Micro Copper and 1-Ounce Gold ADV. According to the company, Micro Gold ADV rose 472% to 693,000 and Micro Silver futures ADV reached 438,000 contracts.

What drove the cryptocurrency volume gain for CME in January 2026 (CME)?

Cryptocurrency ADV increased 106% with $10.8 billion notional traded. According to the company, Micro Ether futures ADV rose 69% to 116,000 and Ether futures ADV rose 67% to 20,000 contracts.

How did energy and Henry Hub Natural Gas perform at CME in January 2026 (CME)?

Energy ADV was 3.6 million contracts, an 11% increase, with record Henry Hub Natural Gas futures/options ADV. According to the company, Henry Hub futures ADV reached 851,000 and options ADV reached 403,000 contracts.

What changes occurred in CME's international and repo trading volumes in January 2026 (CME)?

International ADV rose 19% to 9.2 million contracts while BrokerTec U.S. Repo ADNV increased 20% to $382 billion. According to the company, EMEA ADV rose 18% and APAC ADV rose 25% year-over-year.