Asia-Pacific Tops Global Derivatives on China Reform & Gold Futures Boom

The primary article from CME Group lays out a broad trend: Asia-Pacific is moving from the periphery to a central role in global derivatives markets. Key figures support the region’s dominance—APAC trading in futures and options contracted volumetrics now surpass those in every other region, a result of both macroeconomic weight (contributing ca. 60% of global growth in 2025-2026) and structural reforms that are lowering barriers for both retailers and institutions.

China emerges as the biggest lever in this shift. Reforms include the opening of more commodities futures and options products to QFIs, easing of collateral rules, and expanding access to ETF options. These moves enhance liquidity and align China’s derivative markets more closely with international norms.

Vietnam, though smaller in absolute terms, represents a case of reform cascading across the region—index futures launching, market infrastructure improvements, foreign access relaxed, and inclusion in major emerging market indices projected for late 2026. These reforms suggest that derivative markets in emerging Asian economies are primed for accelerated development.

The surge in gold derivatives usage is noteworthy: trade during Asian hours is climbing across both standard and micro contracts, reflecting investor preference for safety amid geopolitical and rate‐policy uncertainty. The Micro Gold contract’s growth illustrates demand for smaller lot sizes, lower cost entry, and liquidity in less conventional time zones.

Other data sources reinforce these findings. CME’s Q1–Q2 2025 international ADV records show APAC ADV growing roughly 20–30% year-over-year—strongest among non-US regions. The Global FIA numbers show Asia record a 104% increase in volume in 2023, mostly fueled by India’s equity index options.

Strategic implications are multifold: exchanges that can scale product offerings, ensure foreign investor access, and support trading in local time zones may capture outsized growth; there is likely to be pressure on infrastructure, risk management (e.g. for program trading), and regulatory oversight. Open questions remain around potential saturation, margin of gains from regulatory liberalization, and the risks from retail participation as seen in India’s losses.