Exchange operator CME Group released October trading volume data from across its exchanges on Monday.
The company said it had a record month, in terms of average daily volume (ADV), in the number of interest rate, energy, and agricultural contracts traded.
Rates contracts hit an ADV of 12.5m. Notable in this regard was 5.5m of ADV in treasuries futures.
However, the more striking figures were in the micro contracts.
Micro gold futures were up month on month by 67% to an ADV of 110,000 contracts.
The exchange also reported record volumes in Micro Bitcoin futures and Micro Ethereum futures, which were up 332% and 212% respectively.
CME Group also said that trading in Micro E-mini Equity Index futures and options – with an ADV of 2.3m contracts – represented almost 40% of total index trading volume in October.
Trading in most micro contracts is almost certainly being fuelled by retail traders, who can use the instruments to speculate on markets. Micro contracts are one tenth of the size of regular CME contracts.