Singapore Exchange (SGX) saw record foreign exchange (FX) futures trading volumes in August, driven by elevated market volatility and increased hedging activity, according to the exchange operator's latest monthly statistics report.

SGX Group Reports Record FX Futures Volume in August amid Market Volatility

Total FX futures volume on SGX surged 33% year-over-year (YoY) to an all-time high of 5.6 million contracts in August. The exchange's flagship USD/CNH FX Futures saw the trading volume jump 25% compared to the same month last year, reaching 3.4 million contracts.

Retail investors were particularly active, with net purchases hitting S$685 million—the highest in 10 months. Institutional investors also increased their trading activity across various stock segments.

This aligns with data published by other trading venues over the past month. For instance, FXSpotStream reported record volumes in August, with average daily volumes nearly reaching $97 billion, marking a 60% increase compared to the same period in 2023.

The foreign exchange market is riding the wave of a weak dollar and a volatile Japanese yen, as seen on exchanges in Europe and the USA. For example, Cboe's spot currency volumes rose to $1.1 trillion compared to $1.02 trillion reported in July. Additionally, considering there were fewer trading days last month (22 vs 23), the Average Daily Volume Count (ADVC) increased from 44 to nearly 50 billion USD.

Other Numbers

The volatility also boosted activity in SGX's securities market, with total turnover value rising 22% YoY to S$28.8 billion—the highest level since March 2022. The daily average value of the securities (SDAV) climbed 28% to S$1.4 billion.

In the commodities space, SGX saw broad-based gains, with total derivatives volume up 20% year-over-year to 6.1 million contracts. Petrochemicals volume surged 91% to a record equivalent of 2.35 million metric tonnes amid growing hedging demand.

The exchange's new three-month Tokyo Overnight Average Rate (TONA) Futures, launched in late July, continued to gain traction with 37,090 contracts traded in August.

Despite the increased trading activity, Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index declined 0.4% month-on-month to close at 3,442.93, though it remains up 6.7% year-to-date.