ICE September Average Daily Volume Jumps 51% as Interest-Rate ADV Surges 95%

Intercontinental Exchange said September activity accelerated sharply across its markets, with total average daily volume rising 51% from a year earlier and total interest-rate ADV climbing 95%. The figures point to a much busier month for the exchange operator as traders and hedgers adjusted positions across rates, energy and agricultural contracts.

The rates complex was the clearest driver inside ICE’s financial markets. SONIA average daily volume rose 119% year over year, Euribor ADV increased 84% and Gilts ADV advanced 37%. Open interest also expanded, with total interest-rate open interest up 30% and futures open interest reaching a record 15 million lots on September 10.

ICE reported the figures in its September and third-quarter trading statistics. The company said total financials ADV increased 81% from the prior-year month, while financials open interest rose 27%. That was materially stronger than the growth ICE reported in August, when total ADV was up 14% from a year earlier.

Rate markets accounted for much of September’s acceleration

The jump in rates trading came during a month when major European central banks again forced investors to reassess the path of policy. On September 10, the European Central Bank raised its three key interest rates by 25 basis points, taking the deposit facility rate to 2.50% effective September 16. The ECB said inflation was expected to remain above its 2% target for an extended period and reiterated that future decisions would remain data-dependent.

That policy backdrop matters for ICE because Euribor and SONIA futures and options are widely used to manage exposure to short-term European and U.K. interest rates. The ECB’s September decision did not by itself establish the cause of ICE’s volume increase, but it illustrates the kind of changing rate expectations that can lift demand for hedging and repositioning.

The Bank of England added another source of rate uncertainty later in the month. Its Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 to keep Bank Rate at 3.75%, with three members preferring a 25-basis-point increase. The split decision came as the bank said higher energy prices were adding to inflation pressure. ICE did not attribute its SONIA volume increase to that meeting, so the September statistics are best read as evidence of elevated activity rather than proof of a single catalyst.

The contrast with earlier months is notable. In July, ICE reported total interest-rate ADV up 40% year over year and SONIA ADV up 66%. August was softer overall, with total company ADV up 14%. September’s 95% increase in interest-rate ADV therefore represented a clear step-up even against a year in which ICE had already been reporting growth in several rate products.

Energy and commodities also recorded broad gains

The surge was not confined to financial contracts. Total energy ADV rose 26% year over year in September, led by a 29% increase in oil. Brent ADV climbed 51%, Gasoil rose 25% and total natural-gas ADV increased 24%. Within gas, TTF ADV was up 50%, Asia gas gained 38% and North American gas increased 16%.

Agriculture and metals activity also strengthened. ICE said total agriculture and metals ADV rose 44% from a year earlier. Cotton ADV increased 135%, cocoa rose 53% and sugar rose 44%. Sugar open interest was up 42%, including a record 2.5 million lots on September 11, while cocoa and cotton open interest each increased 69%.

Those figures matter because ICE’s exchange business spans several different sources of risk rather than depending on a single futures complex. Rate volatility can support financial volumes at the same time that energy supply, commodity prices or weather-related uncertainty drive activity elsewhere. September showed that breadth, with gains spread across interest rates, energy and agricultural markets rather than concentrated in only one product group.

Open interest provides another useful signal. Unlike ADV, which measures how much trading occurs on an average day, open interest reflects outstanding positions that remain open. ICE reported total open interest up 13% year over year in September. The combination of higher volume and higher open interest indicates that the month involved both heavy trading and a larger stock of outstanding positions across the exchange operator’s markets.

Third-quarter growth was strong before the September spike

September capped a quarter that was already running well above the prior-year period. ICE said total third-quarter ADV increased 31% year over year. Financials ADV rose 45% for the quarter, including a 49% increase in total interest-rate ADV. SONIA ADV was up 63% for the quarter, Euribor increased 40% and Gilts rose 16%.

Energy ADV increased 18% in the third quarter, with oil up 19% and natural gas up 17%. Brent ADV rose 38%, while TTF gas climbed 39% and Asia gas increased 45%. Agriculture and metals ADV was up 57%, including gains of 75% in sugar, 68% in cocoa and 88% in cotton. NYSE equity-options ADV, another part of ICE’s exchange network, increased 29% for the quarter.

The September report therefore strengthened an existing quarterly trend rather than creating it from scratch. What changed in the final month was the magnitude. Total ADV growth accelerated to 51% from the quarter’s 31% pace, while interest-rate ADV rose almost twice as fast as in the quarter overall. That makes the rates complex the most conspicuous part of ICE’s September update.

For investors, the next scheduled checkpoint is ICE’s third-quarter earnings report on October 29. The company previously said it will hold its earnings call at 8:30 a.m. Eastern that day. The volume statistics do not translate mechanically into revenue or profit because economics differ across products and businesses, but the September and quarterly data provide an early view of activity levels before the full financial results are released.