Nymex Volume and Income Jump

A 25% increase in volume and clearing fees propelled Nymex Holdings(NMX Quote) to a record fourth quarter for 2007, the company said Friday.

Net income for the quarter increased 50% to $63.5 million, vs. $42.3 million in 2006. The company earned 67 cents in diluted earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2007, beating analyst's expectations by a penny according to Thomson Financial. These numbers are a dramatic jump over the 48 cents reported for the fourth quarter of 2006.

Average daily volume was 1.539 million contracts during the fourth quarter 2007, a 28% increase over the fourth quarter 2006. Nymex, operator of the New York Mercantile Exchange, offers commodity contracts and options on futures trades. It has been increasing its use of electronic trading, but also continues to combine that with outcry floor trading. ...