1.2.2007 - NY and Chicago exchanges hit records
Nymex Holdings and CBOT Holdings both reported record fourth-quarter and full-year earnings on the back of buoyant financial and commodity market trading activity at the two futures exchanges.

1.2.2007 - Antitrust watchdog examines EU bond market
Europe's top antitrust watchdog revealed that it had opened an inquiry into the European government bond market, following claims that competition is being undermined by rules that force traders to use the MTS platform.

1.2.2007 - On Europe: Bears lie in wait for Goldilocks
A clear call by market strategists at the start of 2007 was the bull market in European equities would continue for a fifth year. However, investors may be too complacent about where markets stand in the current business cycle.

2.2.2006 - CFTC issues new governance guidelines for futures exchanges
The US derivatives regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, has moved to strengthen futures exchange governance by calling for increased public representation at key levels of decision-making, including boards of directors.

2.2.2007 - Oil climbs back near $58
Cold U.S. weather forecast and threat of strike in Nigeria sends crude prices up nearly $2 a barrel.

2.2.2007 - Gold tumbles on Iran news
Gold futures fell nearly 2 percent in New York Friday, a day after they hit a 5-1/2-month high, hurt by a jump in the dollar and news that the United States had no plans to go to war with Iran.

3.2.2007 - Fortress Investment IPO to make hedge-fund history
Fortress Investment Holdings' $600 million IPO is poised to make history Feb. 9 as the first U.S.-based hedge fund firm to stage an initial public offering.

3.2.2007 - Rumours of hedge fund's losses hit copper and zinc
Copper and zinc prices fell sharply yesterday as rumours that a hedge fund had suffered losses prompted a wave of selling. Traders said both metals had broken down...

5.2.2007 - Top structured-finance traders earn USD10 million to USD15 million
Top traders earned as much as USD15 million in 2006 as investment banks tried to keep talent from joining hedge funds, according to a survey by Trader Monthly magazine and Options Group, an executive-search firm. Structured-finance and structured-credit trading, equity sales and commodities trading were among the most lucrative positions last year, the survey said. The global heads of structured-finance trading -- who oversee trading in derivatives such as asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities -- made USD10 million to USD15 million in 2006, Trader Monthly and Options Group found.

5.2.2007 - Commodity indexes fall as investors grow more active
Most of the major commodity indexes showed losses in the first month of 2007, in line with a deep sell-off across the asset class and as the focus switched to other ways of investing in raw materials. US crude oil futures dominated the new year price plunge, falling to a 20-month low at $49.90 a barrel on January 18, a drop of more than 18 percent since the end of last year. Their slide, triggered partly by a mild winter that cut demand for heating oil in the United States, destabilised other commodities, with sharp falls in gold and some base metals.

8.2.2007 - CME wins backing for credit derivative product
The US futures regulator yesterday settled an ongoing dispute between two Chicago futures exchanges by approving CME's plan to list a radical new product despite objections from its cross-town rival. The Commodities Futures Trading Commission granted the Chicago Mercantile Exchange permission to list the world's first exchange-traded credit derivative, despite the Chicago Board Options Exchange's earlier insistence the instrument should be scrutinised instead by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

8.2.2007 - ETFs: A user's guide
There's nothing Wall Street loves more than having a new product to peddle, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been one of the most popular offerings of the new century.

9.2.2007 - Oil climbs above $60, first time in month
U.S. crude oil climbed above $60 a barrel for the first time in a month on Friday, extending a gain of $2 a day earlier, amid signs of falling crude exports from producer group OPEC.

9.2.2007 - Fortress IPO prices at top of range, raising $634 million
Fortress Investment Group priced its initial public offering at the top of the range late Thursday, raising $634 million as it becomes the first hedge fund firm to go public in the U.S.

9.2.2007 - Fewer hedge funds launched as entry harder
Fewer hedge funds set up in 2006 than in 2005 and 2004, data released on Wednesday shows, offering fresh evidence that it is becoming harder to launch a fund as investors demand top track records and pedigrees. Data compiled by Absolute Return magazine shows that 86 of the largest hedge fund launches raised USD31 billion (GBP15.9 billion) in 2006, down from USD34 billion raised by 82 funds in 2005 and USD40 billion raised by 81 funds in 2004.

9.2.2006 - Eurex to launch futures and options on Russian equity market
The international derivatives exchange Eurex has announced plans to launch derivatives based on underlying Russian stocks and indices denominated in US dollars starting on April 23. This launch will enable investors to trade emerging markets derivatives on the Eurex platform for the first time, while trading derivatives in US dollars is another first for the exchange.

9.2.2007 - EU regulators look at extending Ucits to hedge fund indices
The Committee of European Securities Regulators has launched a consultation exercise inviting comment from the investment industry and other interested parties on whether hedge fund indices should be classified as financial indices for the purpose of the Ucits regulatory framework for cross-border investment funds.

10.2.2007 - Dollar Firms With Hawkish Fed Rhetoric
Passing through the last day of a painfully slow week for economic data, currency traders tuned into a number of speeches made by Federal Reserve officials ...

10.2.2007 - Nasdaq's hostile $5.3 bln bid for LSE fizzles out
In a blow to its global expansion plans, the Nasdaq said Saturday its hostile $5.3 billion offer to buy the London Stock Exchange expired without drawing the number of sharesit needed to prevail.

10.2.2007 - Diamonds may have a future as a commodity
Are diamonds a commodity or not? The industry can't seem to decide.

11.2.2007 - Germany's hedge fund plan wins G7 support
Fast-growth in the global hedge fund industry requires a "vigilant" stance by governments and central banks, the G7 summit in Essen concluded. Germany won support - including from the US and UK - at the summit for a package of proposals intended to encourage greater transparency in the trillion-dollar hedge fund industry, without calling into question its economic benefits. "Whenever something is growing as quickly as this, it bears looking at," said Hank Paulson, US treasury secretary.

12.1.2007 - Hedge funds manage 1% of global assets, 25-60% of global trading
The USD1.3 trillion of assets hedge funds have under management represent over 1% of all the world's financial assets, but with leverage, the proportion may be greater than 3%, or in certain asset classes even higher, according to a report by Dresdner Kleinwort. Their influence in global markets is much, much greater, thanks to their feverish activity and liberal use of leverage, whether via derivatives or margin. On the latter score, US hedge funds shoulder two-thirds or so of worldwide margin debt, or something in the neighborhood of USD300 billion. Dresdner Kleinwort also estimates that hedge funds account for between 25% and 60% of the trading in global major markets.

13.2.2007 - Currency trading by hedge funds booming
Currency trading by hedge funds is set to push overall daily turnover in global foreign exchange as high as USD4 trillion within the next two to three years, according to a report by research and consultancy firm Celent. That would mark a big jump from the last authoritative data on the size of the global foreign-exchange market, which was put at nearly USD2 trillion a day by the Bank for International Settlements in 2004.

13.2.2007 - Yen fund begins trading on US stock exchange
A fund that tracks the yen began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday, offering individual investors an alternative way to gain exposure to the Japanese currency. Rockville, Maryland-based Rydex Investments, which launched the yen exchange traded fund, billed it as a way for financial professionals to diversify their portfolios by tapping the USD2 trillion a day foreign exchange market.

13.2.2007 - AIG and BNP Paribas close new vehicle
AIG Global Investment Group and BNP Paribas have closed to new money a deal that grew into the largest complex derivatives-based investment vehicle in its field at a total issue size of $1.1bn, almost five times the size of its nearest rival.

13.2.2007 - Property derivatives market milestone
The fledgling world of property derivatives passed a milestone with the launch of the first online service to track prices based on the Investment Property Data (IPD) index.

14.2.2006 - CME to Launch Hurricane Futures and Options on Futures Contract
CME-Carvill Hurricane Index to be Available for 2007 Hurricane Season ...

14.2.2007 - Nymex to buy stake in Montreal bourse
The New York Mercantile Exchange plans to buy a 10 per cent stake in the Montréal Exchange, Canada's rapidly growing derivatives trading venue.

14.2.2007 - End of the affair for commodities
Institutional investors have fallen out of love with commodities in spite of growing optimism about global growth, according to a monthly survey of fund managers by Merrill Lynch. Managers have become more negative about commodities after falls in oil and metals prices over the past six months, while growing more positive about equities.A net 16 per cent of 206 fund managers polled this month, who collectively oversee $680bn of assets, said they were “underweight” on commodities.

15.2.2007 - US regulators target hedge funds
US regulators are strengthening market surveillance methods amid concern that hedge funds and other large investors are systematically engaging in hard-to-detect forms of insider trading. The initiatives include an international communication system in which regulators around the world can alert one another to suspicious trades and traders, as well as new databases that track the connections among hedge funds, their investors and officers and sources of information about specific public companies.

15.2.2007 - Electronic trading moves into the soft commodities
The electronic age has literally changed commodities markets around the world from a whirlwind of hand waving and paper throwing to flashing screens of green and red. And this addition of electronic trading is a big plus for commodities investors.

16.2.2007 - Dollar shrugs off weak data, consolidating ahead of long weekend
The dollar recovered from session lows against other major currencies Friday, consolidating after sliding to multi-week lows in the prior session, but still finishing the week sharply lower.

16.2.2007 - Oil rises on Nigeria fears
Oil prices rose amid concerns of more supply disruptions in Nigeria after the US warned that militants in West Africa were planning further attacks.

16.2.2007 - Bear Stearns loses one for the prime brokers
A devestating coutroom defeat for Bear Stearns Cos. on Thursday may have wider impact in the brokerage industry that's become increasingly dependent on business from hedge funds.

20.2.2007 - Irwin sticks with gold mines as prices fall
Warren Irwin is sticking with miners, even though his hedge fund -- the best performer among its peers in 2006 -- is down 3.7 per cent this year. Gold-mine investments brought Rosseau Limited Partnership a 122 per cent return last year, the most among hedge funds that bet on mergers, liquidations and spinoffs, according to Hedge Fund Research Inc.'s most recent rankings. Irwin, 42, topped 240 other managers in the group, which had average returns of 15 per cent in 2006. Toronto-based Irwin buys stakes in mines before they have proven their reserves in hopes they will be sold.

20.2.2007 - Dubai oil futures to launch in May
The Middle East's first energy futures contract will be launched on May 1 by the Dubai Mercantile Exchange in an attempt to establish a energy futures market in the region.

20.2.2007 - Commodities investment to soar
Investment in the global commodities market is predicted to rise by as much as 50% by the end of 2008, according to a survey carried out by Barclays Capital. A third of the 240 institutional investors who attended the UK bank's commodities conference last week said they believed assets under management in commodity products would hit at least USD150bn (EUR114bn) by the end of next year. Less than 10% said investment would be stable at current figures of between USD90bn and USD120bn, while 52% of investors said they believed assets under management would hit between USD120bn and USD150bn.

21.2.2007 - CME to Launch Electronic Intercommodity Spreads
CME, the world's largest and most diverse financial exchange, announced today that electronic spread trading of lean hog and live cattle futures will be available on CME Globex® beginning March 12.

21.2.2007 - Corn prices hit fresh 10-year high
Agricultural commodity prices reached long-term highs on Wednesday following trader talk that a weather forecaster had hinted the key US midwest crop growing region could be facing a hot and dry summer.

22.2.2006 - CME to List Dry Whey Futures
CME, the world's largest and most diverse financial exchange, announced today that Dry Whey futures will be listed exclusively on CME Globex® scheduled to begin trading March 19.

22.2.2007 - Gold $1,000 is on the way
Even the most die hard gold bear has to admit that the recent price action in gold has been indicative of a very healthy bull market. It's alive and well, even after the best efforts by naysayers to smack it down.

22.2.2007 - Feds urge 'vigilance,' but not new rules for hedge funds
Better vigilance, not new rules, is needed to ensure that hedge funds are properly understood and don't pose a threat to investors or the financial system, regulators said Thursday.

22.2.2007 - Bets on Fed's rates rulings gather pace
Activity in a novel interest rate futures contract has been picking up in recent weeks as investors try to insure against a surprise move by the US Federal Reserve, in spite of a broad consensus that the outlook for interest rates is steady.

23.2.2007 - Gold hits 7-month high
U.S. gold futures rose 1 percent and silver jumped to a nine-month high on Friday as investors poured money into the precious metals markets before the weekend because of heightened geopolitical tensions and firmer energy prices.

23.2.2007 - Buoyant week for commodities
Oil prices moved higher and have now recovered all of their losses from the start of the year, as commodity markets ended a buoyant week.

24.2.2007 - US Dollar Faces Many Risks in the Week Ahead
Throughout the past week, the value of the US dollar was determined almost exclusively by foreign developments. The dollar skyrocketed against the Japanese Yen on carry trade demand and slipped against the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars on rising commodity prices.

26.2.2007 - Hedge funds join grains rally
Hedge funds may start taking a bigger role in the booming grains markets. Following an unusual sale of two grain elevators to a hedge fund recently, industry members say other funds that trade agricultural-commodity futures may start adding physical assets, such as grain elevators, ethanol plants and farms, to their portfolios. By controlling the operations of elevators and other assets, these lightly regulated investment vehicles may be able to affect price movements at the Chicago Board of Trade, where contracts from corn to wheat are traded, some say.

26.2.2007 - Hedge funds cool on alternative energy firms
Alternative-energy companies may be more popular than ever, but a number of hedge funds reduced their stakes in solar power and ethanol producers in the fourth quarter, according to filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Bloomberg News reported. Those include DE Shaw & Co of New York, Tudor Investment Corp of Greenwich, Conn, Citadel Investment Group LLC of Chicago, Caxton Associates LLC of New York, SAC Capital Advisors LLC of Stamford, Conn and Pequot Capital Management Inc of Westport, Conn.

28.2.2007 - FXall goes live with Accelor foreign exchange ECN
Online foreign exchange trading portal FXall has gone live with Accelor, a next-generation foreign exchange electronic communications network that it says sets a new standard in foreign exchange trading, combining anonymous ECN functionality with advanced technical architecture and comprehensive market data.

28.2.2007 - Biggest day ever for futures, options on CME
Chicago Mercantile Exchange reports record volume, nearly 14 million contracts, at value of $8 trillion, changed hands Tuesday.