CME Group Reaches New Open Interest and Volume Records in Dairy Futures and Options

Rhea-AI Summary

CME Group (NYSE:CME) reported new records in Dairy futures and options: a peak open interest of 403,113 contracts on February 27, 2026, and a record monthly average daily volume of 11,234 contracts in February 2026.

Additional records: Class IV monthly ADV 1,443; Cash-Settled Cheese OI 90,378 (Feb 26) and monthly ADV 2,985. The company attributed volumes to tightening dairy inventories and strong whey protein demand.

Positive

• Open interest record of 403,113 contracts on Feb 27, 2026
• Monthly ADV record of 11,234 contracts in February 2026 (+18% vs Sep 2025)
• Class IV milk monthly ADV record of 1,443 contracts
• Cash-Settled Cheese OI record of 90,378 contracts on Feb 26, 2026
• Cash-Settled Cheese monthly ADV record of 2,985 contracts

Negative

• None.

Key Figures

Dairy OI record: 403,113 contracts Dairy ADV record: 11,234 contracts Prior Dairy ADV: 9,514 contracts +3 more

6 metrics

Dairy OI record 403,113 contracts Open interest in Dairy futures and options on Feb. 27

Dairy ADV record 11,234 contracts Monthly average daily volume in February

Prior Dairy ADV 9,514 contracts Previous monthly ADV record in September 2025

Class IV Milk ADV 1,443 contracts Record monthly ADV in Class IV Milk futures and options

Cheese OI record 90,378 contracts Record open interest in Cash-Settled Cheese on Feb. 26

Cheese ADV record 2,985 contracts Record monthly ADV in Cash-Settled Cheese futures and options

Market Reality Check

Price: $326.46 Vol: Volume 2,237,687 is 0.86x...

normal vol

$326.46 Last Close

Volume Volume 2,237,687 is 0.86x the 20-day average of 2,595,768, showing no unusual activity despite the record announcement. normal

Technical Shares at $326.46 are above the 200-day MA of $276.43 and sit -0.41% from the 52-week high of $327.79, indicating a strong longer-term uptrend.

Peers on Argus

CME gained 2.18% while peers were mixed: ICE -0.29%, MCO -0.72%, COIN +7.35%, ND...

CME gained 2.18% while peers were mixed: ICE -0.29%, MCO -0.72%, COIN +7.35%, NDAQ +2.48%, SPGI +2.33%. The move appears more company-specific than sector-driven.

Historical Context

5 past events · Latest: Feb 25 (Positive)

Pattern 5 events

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Feb 25	Conference presentation	Positive	+3.0%	Executive presenting at Raymond James institutional investor conference.
Feb 24	Record OI Treasuries	Positive	-3.7%	Record 36.3M U.S. Treasury futures and options open interest.
Feb 19	Crypto trading expansion	Positive	+0.5%	Plan to launch 24/7 cryptocurrency futures and options trading.
Feb 13	Event contracts milestone	Positive	+0.1%	Event contracts reach 100 million traded in roughly eight weeks.
Feb 12	Director nominations	Neutral	-0.3%	Announcement of board slate and class-specific nominees for annual meeting.

Pattern Detected

Recent operational and product news has usually seen share price moves broadly aligned with the positive tone, with one notable divergence on a major open interest record.

Recent Company History

Over the last few weeks, CME has highlighted multiple volume and open interest milestones, including record U.S. Treasury OI on Feb 19, 2026 and 100 million event contracts traded by Feb 13, 2026. It also announced 24/7 cryptocurrency futures and options trading starting May 29 and regular corporate updates such as director nominations and a conference presentation on Mar 3, 2026. Today’s dairy futures and options records extend this pattern of growth across product areas.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement highlights further product-level growth, with CME reporting record Dairy futures a...

Analysis

This announcement highlights further product-level growth, with CME reporting record Dairy futures and options open interest of 403,113 contracts and a record monthly ADV of 11,234 contracts. Additional records in Class IV Milk and Cash-Settled Cheese extend a recent string of milestones across Treasuries, crypto and event contracts. Investors may track whether these volume trends persist and how they connect to broader results discussed in the recent 10-K and earnings 8-K filings.

Key Terms

open interest, average daily volume, futures, options, +2 more

6 terms

open interest financial

"set a new open interest (OI) record of 403,113 contracts on February 27"

Open interest is the total number of outstanding futures or options contracts that have been created but not yet closed or settled. Think of it like the number of active tickets in a queue — higher open interest means more traders are involved and the market is more liquid, which helps price moves be more reliable and shows the strength of investor interest or conviction in a trend.

average daily volume financial

"reached a new record monthly average daily volume (ADV) of 11,234 contracts"

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.

futures financial

"Dairy futures and options products set a new open interest"

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

"Dairy futures and options reached a new record monthly average daily volume"

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.

cash-settled financial

"Cash-Settled Cheese futures and options reached a record OI of 90,378"

Cash-settled describes a financial contract that is resolved by paying the monetary difference between agreed and actual prices, instead of delivering the underlying asset. For investors, it matters because it simplifies trades—like settling a bet with cash rather than handing over the item—and affects liquidity, tax treatment, and counterparty exposure, since you receive or pay only the value change rather than owning or transferring the actual security or commodity.

central counterparty clearing regulatory

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

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.

CHICAGO, March 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, today announced that its Dairy futures and options products set a new open interest (OI) record of 403,113 contracts on February 27. In addition, Dairy futures and options reached a new record monthly average daily volume (ADV) of 11,234 contracts in February. The previous ADV record was 9,514 contracts in September 2025. 

"Tightening nonfat dry milk and butter inventories along with strong demand for whey protein have led clients to turn to CME Group in record numbers to manage their risk," said John Ricci, CME Group Managing Director and Global Head of Agricultural Products. "Our commitment to our clients centers on providing a range of precise hedging tools to help them navigate all market environments."

Other records achieved across the company's Dairy products included:

• Class IV Milk futures and options traded a record monthly ADV of 1,443 contracts
• Cash-Settled Cheese futures and options reached a record OI of 90,378 on February 26 and monthly ADV of 2,985 contracts

For more information on CME Group Dairy futures and options, please visit here.

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-reaches-new-open-interest-and-volume-records-in-dairy-futures-and-options-302702723.html

SOURCE CME Group

FAQ

What open interest record did CME (CME) Dairy futures reach on February 27, 2026?

CME Dairy futures and options reached an open interest record of 403,113 contracts on February 27, 2026. According to CME Group, heightened client hedging amid tighter nonfat dry milk and butter inventories drove increased participation in Dairy contracts.

How large was CME (CME) Dairy monthly average daily volume in February 2026 and how does it compare to September 2025?

February 2026 monthly ADV for CME Dairy was 11,234 contracts, up from 9,514 in September 2025. According to CME Group, that represents a meaningful increase as clients sought risk management amid supply tightening and strong whey protein demand.

What record metrics did CME (CME) report for Cash-Settled Cheese futures and options in February 2026?

Cash-Settled Cheese hit an open interest record of 90,378 contracts on February 26, 2026 and a monthly ADV of 2,985 contracts. According to CME Group, these records reflect elevated trading and hedging activity in cheese markets.

Did CME (CME) report any specific record for Class IV Milk futures and options in February 2026?

Yes. Class IV Milk futures and options set a record monthly ADV of 1,443 contracts in February 2026. According to CME Group, that record underscores growing use of Class IV contracts by market participants for milk price risk management.

What reasons did CME (CME) give for the surge in Dairy trading volumes in February 2026?

CME Group cited tightening nonfat dry milk and butter inventories and strong whey protein demand as drivers of record Dairy trading volumes. According to CME Group, those supply-demand factors led clients to increase hedging activity on its markets.