CHICAGO, April 29 (Xinhua) -- Global markets company CME Group Inc. on Wednesday posted a 54 percent jump in profit and a 29 percent increase in revenue for the first quarter as trading volume surged to a record high amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The parent company of the Chicago Board of Trade and other exchanges said its net income for the latest quarter rose to 766.2 million U.S. dollars from 496.9 million dollars a year earlier. Diluted earnings came to 2.14 dollars per share. Adjusted for one-time gains and costs, the Chicago-based company had earnings of 2.33 dollars per share.
Revenue rose to 1.52 billion dollars from 1.18 billion. Volume surged in most products amid extreme volatility as concern grew globally over the outbreak's economic impact.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges, taking a devastating toll on human life and creating extraordinary uncertainty around the world," CME Chief Executive Officer Terry Duffy said in the company's earnings release.
"During the quarter, we saw significantly increased levels of client hedging and risk transfer, across all products and time zones."
Average daily volume (ADV) rose to a quarterly record overall as well as across Europe, the Middle East and Africa and the Asia-Pacific region. First-quarter ADV in the United States was 27 million contracts, up 45 percent from a year earlier.
Non-U.S. ADV reached 7.3 million contracts, up 56 percent, including growth of 54 percent in Europe, 73 percent in Asia and 21 percent in Latin America. Enditem
