LeapRate Retail FX Volume Index sets record in April at $215 billion

Retail FX volumes driven by continued strong volumes in the Far East, aided by commodities volatility.

LeapRate’s Retail FX Volume Index, sponsored by Leverate, hit an all-time record in April, rising nearly 10% to $215 billion daily. FX trading volumes now sit about 25% above last year’s levels. The increased activity in the retail FX sector was driven primarily by traders in the Far East, who set records in both Japan and China.

Around the world, retail traders — who typically follow volatility — were encouraged by a risk-on bull market with continually rising equity prices, and nearly unprecedented volatility in commodities markets.

LeapRate’s Retail FX Volume Index is a monthly measure of global trading activity in the retail FX sector.

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Sources: LeapRate research, monthly and quarterly volume reports of various Forex ECNs and Forex brokerage firms.

Gerald Segal, LeapRate Managing Director commented, “Not much to say after looking at April retail FX volumes but say ‘wow’. Retail FX brokers saw their best-ever trading day in the middle of the month when Gold took its $200-in-one-day dive. GMO Click in Japan nearly eclipsed $1 trillion in volumes for the month. FXCM had its best month ever. Alpari too. If you’re a retail FX broker and not knocking the cover off the ball (to use one of my favorite baseball analogies), then something is wrong.”

The LeapRate Retail FX Volume Index, sponsored by Leverate, is a monthly measure of activity, stated in billions of dollars per day. It is calculated using proprietary formulas developed by LeapRate. The data input into the model are based on examining monthly and/or quarterly activity levels put out by various retail FX brokerage firms; similar activity levels announced by other FX aggregators such as Forex ECNs (e.g. Thomson Reuters, FXall, ICAP-EBS, Hotspot FX) and FX settlement firms (e.g. CLS Group); as well as anecdotal evidence we encounter as part of our general research activities in the Forex sector.

LeapRate is a leading research and information firm serving the global FX industry. Through its partnership with Dow Jones, LeapRate publishes the LeapRate-Dow Jones Forex Industry Report, a comprehensive review of the retail FX industry. Other LeapRate services include Best-of-the-Web FX Research and our daily FX Research email for traders, the Forex Yellow Pages, Forex Exec Search job listings, and our Approved List of regulated FX brokerage firms worldwide. For more information please see our website at www.leaprate.com.

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