The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has just reported its monthly activity report for December 2016, which managed to close out the year on a mixed note. On a MoM basis much of its business was lower, due in large part to a highly volatile November, however its yearly performance in 2016 was strong, relative to 2015.
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For the month ending December 2016, the value of ASX-listed stocks, as measured by the global All Ordinaries Index, rose 3.9% MoM from November 2016 – the figure also compared to a declining expected future Volatility reading of 11.9 in December 2016, down from a peak of 15.2 in November 2016.
However, the ASX’s rise in stock value during December was outperformed by several other regional exchanges and market blocs, notably when weighed against leaders such as Germany (7.9%), the United Kingdom (5.3%), and Japan (4.4%). However, the ASX performed better than the United States (1.8%) and Hong Kong (-3.5%) in December.
Metrics Breakdown
Looking closer at market specifics in December 2016, the ASX also managed to raise $6.5 billion in total capital during the month, which was higher by 18.2% MoM from $5.5 billion in November 2016. Compared to 2015, the ASX also saw its raised capital retreat by -24.6% from $8.6 billion in December 2015.
However, in 2016 as a whole, the ASX raised over $60.9 billion, indicative of a decline -41.9% YoY from $104.9 billion in 2015.
By extension, the total value of cash markets for the ASX during December 2016 was $95.5 billion, down -17.7% MoM from $116.1 billion in November 2016. In addition to this waning figure, the ASX also reported a negative performance in its average daily value on-market, yielding a figure of $4.2 billion in December 2016, down approximately -10.6% MoM from $4.7 billion in November 2016.
In 2016, the ASX’s average number of daily trades in its cash markets, which includes equities, interest rates, and warrants trades, came in at 1,015,083. This was higher by a margin of 24.0% YoY from 2015.
The ASX also disclosed its futures trading statistics during December 2016, yielding a total of 13.8 million futures contracts traded during the month, or 16.9% higher MoM from 11.8 million contracts in November 2016. Average daily contracts were also trending higher at 692,038 in December 2016, vs. just 529,927 contracts in November 2016, up 30.6% MoM.
