UPDATE 1-CME August volume drops; strikes deal with Osaka
(Adds ICE volume figures, OSE agreement, statement from CME, stock activity, NEW YORK/TOKYO dateline)
NEW YORK/TOKYO, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange operator CME Group Inc (CME.O) said August trading volume tumbled 32 percent from a year earlier, when the onset of the subprime lending crisis boosted activity.
Earlier on Wednesday, the operator of the world's top derivatives exchange had announced an agreement to develop new products with the Osaka Securities Exchange (8697.OJ), Japan's second-largest bourse. The deal effectively enables CME clients to trade Nikkei index futures around the clock, the companies said.
CME, combined with its recent New York Mercantile Exchange acquisition, averaged 11 million contracts per day, down from 16.3 million in August 2007. Analysts expected sequentially lower volumes in August, which is typically slow.
Rival futures exchange IntercontinentalExchange Inc (ICE.N) reported a 5 percent rise in the average daily volume of its contracts.
Shares of CME rose 2.4 percent to $346.15, while ICE fell 1.5 percent to $90.58.
The OSE is the largest market for Nikkei 225 index futures, the most popular type of Japanese equities index futures. The Singapore Exchange is the second-largest market, followed by the CME.
"By working directly with OSE, we hope to identify additional opportunities to create new benefits for our customers," CME Chief Executive Craig Donohue said in a statement.
U.S. equities index futures, such as S&P and Nasdaq index futures, can be traded on the CME's Globex 24-hour system. (Reporting by Jonathan Spicer in New York and Yumiko Nishitani in Tokyo; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)
