CLS Group Sees FX Volumes Surge in January as Markets Awaken

CLS Group has reported its volumes and aggregation services statistics for the first month of the calendar year. After closing out the prior year on a lower note, January 2018 showed a resurgence in trading volumes, as volatility picked up across markets.

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FX volumes in particular have been notably improved with several institutional venues scoring fresh highs. The combination of more normalized trading schedules in tandem with volatility, has helped prop up volumes. In particular, FX markets have been in a state of flux recently, given the wide trading ranges of the USD as it weakened vs several majors. These trends were on display across CLS’ volumes in January, not surprisingly rising across the board relative to the month prior.

Looking at its statistics, the average daily traded volume submitted to CLS was up in January 2018. This reading came in at $1.81 trillion, up by 15.6 percent month-over-month from $1.56 trillion in December 2017. Across a yearly timetable however, the figure saw an even stronger rise, correlating to a 24.0 percent increase relative to January 2017’s reading of $1.46 trillion.

In January 2018, CLS reported its swaps volumes at $1.189 trillion, up by 9.1 percent month-over-month from $1.090 trillion set back in December 2017. Once again, across a yearly interval, the latest figures were pointed upwards, justifying a 31.5 percent increase from $904.0 billion in January 2017.

In terms of CLS’ spot FX volume, the group has reported a figure at $513.0 billion in January 2018, growing by 31.2 percent month-over-month from $391.0 billion December 2017. The figure was also higher by 11.5 percent year-over-year from the $460.0 billion set back in January 2017.

Finally, the upbeat performance was also extended to CLS’ forwards business during January 2018. This segment yielded a figure of $103.0 billion, up 27.1 percent month-over-month from $81.0 billion in December 2017. The reading was also reflective of a 10.7 percent rise year-over-year from $93.0 billion in January 2017.

Looking ahead, volatility appears to be in healthy supply, as markets have awoken in early 2018. With all eyes trained on central banks during this period, markets are likely to see continued FX activity throughout H1 2018.