Latest News

Oil futures and options traded at record levels during Q2 as investors navigated volatility

The total oil futures lots and options traded on the Intercontinental Exchange reached record highs during the second quarter as U.S. president Donald Trump waged a global trade war, and the geopolitical conflict in the Middle East intensified.

Why it's important

LSEG data show that there was significant volatility in the second half of the year. Brent crude futures dropped to a low of $60.23 a bar on May 5, and then surged to $78.85 a barrel on June 19. This is the highest level since January.

CONTEXT

Trump announced sweeping import duties on April 2. China's retaliatory actions stoked fears of a recession and led to a selloff on April 4, 2019.

Brent prices fell to their lowest level since February 2021 on May 5, after producer group OPEC+ increased output.

Brent reached a six-month peak on June 19, when investors were on edge due to the conflict between Israel and Iran.

By the Numbers

Investors traded 219,323,730 lots of oil futures, options and forwards from April to June, a record compared to the 181,520,640 lot previous record set in the first quarter of 2025.

This new record includes 99,541,065 Brent futures lots and 20,333728 Brent options. The traders also traded 30,056,174 Lots of West Texas Intermediate futures and Options (Cushing), and 3,211,194 Lots of Midland WTI Futures (HOU).

KEY QUOTE

The analyst at UBS, Giovanni Staunovo said, "I believe hedging activities played a part. When oil prices dropped to $60 per barrel in Brent oil, oil consumers like airlines began to hedge. And when oil prices spiked mid-June oil producing companies decided that they would hedge."

Staunovo continued, "At the time, investors were looking to either hold positions that are inflation-conscious (long) or growth-conscious (short) in oil due to the tariffs." (Reporting and editing by Stephanie Kelly, David Gregorio and Georgina McCartney from Houston)

(source: Reuters)