Dubai derivatives exchange DGCX posts record turnover in Q1

The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) said on Monday that it recorded in the first three months in 2016 a trading volume of 4.5 million contracts, representing a 37 percent year-on-year increase and the highest quarterly volume in its 11-year history.

DGCX, the biggest international market in the Middle East for options and future contracts on commodities, precious metals and currencies, also said the average daily volumes in the first quarter reached 72,306 contracts, recording a growth of 39 percent over the corresponding period last year.

Options on the Indian Rupee saw the trading of 80,935 contracts, up 217 percent year on year.

In the energy segment, the oil (West Texas Intermediate) contract witnessed an increase of 305 percent, registering a total of 37,640 contracts.

DGC's CEO, Gaurang Desai, said global markets have been witnessing exceptional volatility owing to factors such as consistently low oil prices, economic slowdown across the globe and changes in various exchange rates.

"This has, however, led investors to adopt a more cautious approach and increasingly make use of exchanges like DGCX that provides effective hedging and risk mitigation mechanisms to ease the financial pressures in times of economic uncertainty," he said.

"As the exchange continues to grow its product offerings and member base, we remain upbeat about getting past this volume growth in the next quarter," Desai said.