Open interest in futures and options contracts at MGEX hit a record high on Friday as a recent rally in wheat prices has sparked investor enthusiasm for the commodity. Open interest - which measures the number of futures positions not yet off-set with a buy or sell order - reached 77,344 contracts at MGEX, which used to be known as the Minneapolis Grains Exchange.
The previous record, set on October 8, 2007, was 76,805 contracts. "Never before in our 130-year history have our market participants utilised our product offerings as much as they are today," Mark Bagan, president and chief executive of MGEX, said in a statement. The bulk of the open interest - 71,198 futures contracts - came in MGEX's hard red spring wheat contract.
Trading volume has also increased in MGEX's wheat contract due to the lack of rain in the US Plains, deteriorating conditions in Australia and demand for high-protein wheat. Spring wheat futures have risen about 60 percent since June as drought reduced the world's supply of high-protein wheat. The December spring wheat futures contract closed up 6-3/4 cents at $8.03-3/4 a bushel on Monday.
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