Moscow Exchange (MOEX) published its trading metrics for 2022, reporting its forex market trading volume of RUB 267.8 trillion, which is visibly lower than the RUB 322 trillion reported for the previous year.

A Weak Year for MOEX’s FX Trading Demand

According to the press release from Thursday, the average daily trading volume (ADV) came in at RUB 1,058.6 billion, decreasing almost 17% from RUB 1,262.9 billion reported for the entire year of 2021.

Swap and forward trades fell the most, losing 34% and closing the year at RUB 167.5 trillion. However, MOEX saw an increase in spot trading volumes, which rose 5.5% to RUB 100.4 trillion.

In comparison, data from the US CME Group showed average daily volume growth of 19% reaching a record 23.3 million contracts for the full year of 2022. For the Forex market alone, the increase advanced 24%.

Other MOEX Markets in 2022

Apart from the Forex market, trading in equities , bonds and derivatives markets of MOEX declined in 2022. The equity market saw a volume of RUB 17.6 trillion compared to RUB 30.0 trillion which was reported a year earlier. It translated into a sharply lower ADV, which fell from RUB 117.6 billion to RUB 69.5 billion.

Depreciation in the bond market fell to RUB 19.6 trillion and was among the most modest at 14%. However, the derivatives market declines were far more substantial with trading volumes falling to RUB 77.9 trillion from RUB 158.5 trillion reported for the full year 2021. Average daily volumes contracted by 50% to RUB 307.8 billion.

The money market was one of the few exceptions to lowering numbers, in which trading volumes rose 41.2% to a record RUB 672.7 trillion and ADV to RUB 2,659 billion. In addition, MOEX reported growth in the wheat and sugar market, which grew 4.9 times from RUB 14.6 billion in 2021 to RUB 71.1 billion in 2022.

In November, the Moscow exchange operator reported an annual decline in overall fees and commission income for the third quarter of 2022. The absolute figure came in at RUB 8.9 billion, declining by 14.3% compared to the same period a year earlier.