Annual trading volumes on the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) in 2012 registered a substantial growth of 137 percent from 2011 to reach 9,601,553 contracts. The upsurge in 2012 volumes — the DGCX's highest ever annual volumes since inception — was led by the substantial growth of Indian Rupee and Gold Futures. Traded over a period of 256 trading days, the annual volumes represent a value of $372.83 billion.
The year 2012 also saw the DGCX setting many other records, including the highest quarterly volume of 2,877,392 contracts in the fourth quarter and the highest monthly volume of 1,057,508 contracts in October. DGCX recorded an average daily volume of 37,506 contracts in 2012, an increase of 138 percent against 2011.
As with 2011, currencies drove the majority of 2012 growth accounting for 93 percent of total contracts. Currency volumes reached 8,880,403 in 2012, an increase of 149 percent from the previous year. Indian Rupee Futures dominated currency trading on the DGCX, registering a growth of 171 percent from the previous year to reach 8,638,993 contracts. Currently, DGCX contributes 30 percent of the global total exchange-traded value of Indian Rupee Futures contracts.
Volumes in the precious metal segment registered a 30 percent increase over 2011. Trading in DGCX’s flagship contract Gold Futures touched 552,001 contracts, up 42 percent from last year. During the year, DGCX Gold Futures attracted significant interest from traders in Asian hubs like Singapore, which have substantial gold trading links with Dubai. In the base metal segment, DGCX Copper Futures, the first copper futures contract to be introduced in the Middle East, traded 137,887 contracts since its launch in April 20, 2012. The product is today the third most actively traded copper contract in Asia.
Meanwhile, in December 2012, DGCX traded 900,602 contracts worth $34.4 billion, an increase of 117 percent on 2011. As with the rest of the year, the currency segment led growth, trading 854,034 contracts, up 111 percent from December 2011. The precious metals segment led by Gold Futures also saw a significant increase of 374 percent from the previous year trading 38,052 contracts.
Gary Anderson, CEO of DGCX, said: "DGCX’s exceptional performance in 2012 has been driven by its ability to enhance liquidity in its contracts and widen investor participation. Trading on DGCX has benefited from the rising profile of derivatives as an asset class among regional investors and the growing need to manage currency and commodity price risk in a volatile environment. Over 2013, we will look to expand our product portfolio and further enhance our contracts based on market feedback. With the development of our new trading platform in partnership with global technology provider Cinnober, we are well positioned to meet growing demand."
DGCX received many industry accolades for its growth and product innovation in 2012. Global Banking & Finance Review named DGCX the world's Best Global Commodities Exchange 2012. The Indian Rupee Futures contract was named the Contract of the Year 2012 award by FOW.
DGCX volumes reach all-time high of 9.6m contracts
