Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) posted record revenues for the first quarter and exchange leaders said, during last Tuesday's annual meeting, that it is strategically poised for competition.
The exchange reported net income for the first quarter of $26.1m, a 40% jump from $18.7m a year earlier. Net revenues climbed 25% to a record $126m in the first quarter, up from $101.1m for the same period a year earlier. And earnings per diluted share rose to 77 cents, up 22% from 63 cents.
The record earnings were due largely to record volumes for the exchange during the first three months. CME posted an average daily volume of 2.4m contracts in the first quarter, a 20% increase from the same quarter last year. In March 2003, the exchange hit an average daily volume record of almost 2.8m contracts....