Some interesting information on the CME August Market Data page http://www.cme.com/dta/hist/monthly...nth=7&theyear=2003&submit=Search&pageOption=0 A low volume summer compared with last year. Pit volume seems to be shrinking dramatically. It's interesting that bid and ask sizes for the emini are now often in the quadruple digits. So much for the theory that the pit arb is what creates the emini volume. The emini is now the dog and the pit is the tail. Woof! Jan-Aug volume % CHGE Emini S&P +65.7% Pit S&P -10.3% August 2003 10 Emini S&P($50) contracts traded for each pit ($250) contract Emini S&P 10,859,652 Pit S&P 1,079,405 August 2002 6.9 Emini S&P($50) contracts traded for each pit ($250) contract Emini S&P 11,199,858 Pit S&P 1,615,148