Trading of a key derivatives contract used to speculate on future interest rate policy on NYSE Liffe (the London-based futures exchange) has overtaken an equivalent dollar-based contract traded in Chicago for the first time.

Trading volume in the options on euribor futures contract in the first six months of this year jumped by 70 per cent, compared with a 19 per cent fall in options on eurodollar interest rate futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, according to figures from the Futures Industry Association in Washington DC.