Notice No. 02-55
February 14, 2002

To:			All Exchange Members / Member Firms
			All Clearing Members

From:		J. Robert Collins, Jr., President

Re:		NYMEX, CME Partner to Offer E-mini Energy Futures

The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (NYMEX), and Chicago Mercantile
Exchange Inc. (CME) today announced at a joint news conference in New York
that they have reached a cooperative agreement to offer newly created
"E-mini" versions of key NYMEX energy futures contracts for trading on CME's
GLOBEX
 electronic trading platform and clearing at the NYMEX Clearing
House.

	The first E-mini energy contracts will begin trading in the summer,
officials of the exchanges said.

	The agreement calls for the two exchanges to launch smaller,
electronically traded versions of NYMEX's crude oil, natural gas, heating
oil and gasoline futures contracts.  Precious metals contracts may be
introduced in subsequent phases.  Modeled after CME's popular line of E-mini
stock index contracts, which are one-fifth the size of the standard-sized
contracts, the new E-mini energy and precious metals futures would be a
to-be-determined fraction of the size of the standard-sized NYMEX contracts.


	Under the cross-access program, CME members will be granted access
to GLOBEX to trade the E-mini versions of the energy futures products and to
NYMEX ACCESS* to trade NYMEX Division products listed on that system,
subject to the guarantee of a NYMEX clearing firm.  CME members who are not
members of NYMEX will receive discounts for these trades.  Similarly, NYMEX
members will receive access to GLOBEX and discounts on fees for CME products
traded on GLOBEX with a CME member firm guarantee, and for the E-mini energy
products with the guarantee of a NYMEX clearing firm.

	The Exchange officials said that a cross-margining program will
provide capital efficiencies for market professionals and proprietary
accounts by combining the positions at joint or affiliated clearing members
in baskets of CME and NYMEX or COMEX Division commodities, the new E-mini
energy products, and GSCI* futures and options into a single portfolio.  The
risk-based performance bond (margining) systems of each clearing
organization will then determine a single performance bond requirement
across both markets.

	Vincent Viola, NYMEX Chairman, said, "This deal will bring our
successful energy products to a broad retail user base through the GLOBEX
distribution network, as well as expand the opportunities and cost
efficiencies for participants in both markets."

 	"This is an innovative new development in the futures industry that
builds on the long-standing relationship between our exchanges," said CME
Chairman Scott Gordon.  "With this cooperation agreement, we are blending
CME's successful E-mini concept, our GLOBEX infrastructure and global
distribution network with NYMEX's proven product line, established liquidity
and customer relationships in these markets."

	NYMEX President J. Robert Collins, Jr., said, "In 2002, we have seen
a 64% increase in natural gas futures over the same period last year, as
well as a 20% increase in overall energy futures trading.  By reducing the
size of the contract unit, we hope to emulate the CME's success in expanding
the trading community for our most liquid markets."

	"Tremendous synergy has been developed between the open outcry and
electronic trading in our stock index markets since CME first introduced the
E-mini S&P 500 futures contract in 1997 and the E-mini Nasdaq-100 contract
in 1999," said CME President and Chief Executive Officer Jim McNulty.  "By
expanding GLOBEX distribution to the NYMEX floor and leveraging our existing
distribution channels, we hope to build on our previous success, enhance
market liquidity and expand the customer base for energy and, potentially,
metals futures."

	Unlike their standard-sized counterparts, the new E-mini products
will be cash-settled to the respective NYMEX futures contract month final
settlement price on the last day of trading.  Two contract months will trade
at any given time.

	GLOBEX is an open access electronic trading platform that displays
the "book" to any qualified market participant with the ability to route
orders to the system.  The book represents the ability to view bids and
offers in the market.  Under the agreement, market participants interested
in trading the new products will be designated "qualified" if they are
guaranteed by a NYMEX clearing member firm.  In addition, NYMEX members and
customers trading the new products on GLOBEX will have access to CME's
electronically traded products, subject to the guarantee of a CME clearing
firm.

	In addition to the extensive distribution network and connectivity
alternatives of GLOBEX, the exchanges will work together to provide NYMEX
members and customers with access to GLOBEX, both on the NYMEX trading floor
and around the world.  Points of access will include GLOBEX TraderSM-Direct
terminals placed on the NYMEX trading floor adjacent to the pit, enhancing
liquidity and providing trading opportunities similar to CME's E-mini equity
index complex on its trading floor.

	NYMEX and CME jointly developed CLEARING 21*, the clearing platform
operated at both exchanges for high-volume, high-capacity clearing and
settlement of exchange-based transactions. The system processes reported
trades and tracks positions continuously in real time, providing users with
instantaneous information on trades, positions and risk exposure.

The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc., (www.nymex.com) is a subsidiary of
NYMEX Holdings, Inc.  The Exchange is the world's largest physical
commodities exchange, and the preeminent global trading forum for energy,
and metals..  Products include crude oil, heating oil, gasoline, natural
gas, platinum, gold, silver, copper, and aluminum futures and options;
propane, coal, electricity, and palladium futures; and options on the
spreads between crude oil and heating oil and crude oil and gasoline. In
2001, its trading volume totaled more than 103 million contracts, with a
notional value of approximately $3.2 trillion. Overall Exchange volume
year-to-date is up 26 percent.

Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (www.cme.com) is the largest futures
exchange in the United States.  As an international marketplace, CME brings
together buyers and sellers on its trading floors and GLOBEX
around-the-clock electronic trading platform.  CME offers futures contracts
and options on futures primarily in four product areas:  interest rates,
stock indexes, foreign exchange and commodities.  CME pioneered the
E-mini concept with the September 1997 launch of E-mini S&P 500 futures and
options.  The exchange followed up in 1999 with E-mini Nasdaq-100 futures.
The two stock index futures contracts quickly became the fastest-growing
products in CME history.  The exchange moves about $1.5 billion per day in
settlement payments and manages $28.2 billion in collateral deposits.  CME
is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc.

02-20						#    #    #

CME, GLOBEX, CLEARING 21 and GLOBEX Trader are trademarks of Chicago
Mercantile Exchange, Inc.  Standard & Poor's
, S&P
, S&P 500
, Standard &
Poor's 500, and 500 are trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Nasdaq and Nasdaq-100 Index are trademarks of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc.
GSCI is a trademark of Goldman Sachs & Co.  These trademarks are used herein
under license.

The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc., has attempted, wherever possible, to
make statements in good faith , as of the date of this release, by using
words such as anticipate, believes, expects, and words and terms of similar
substance in connection with any discussion of its present and future
operations within the industry. Any forward-looking statements made by, or
on behalf of the Exchange, involve a number of risks, trends, uncertainties,
and other factors which may cause actual results to differ materially,
including the Exchange's receipt of the necessary Commodity Futures Trading
Commission approval; timely performance and cooperative effort of exchange
partners; and changes in financial or business conditions at the Exchange.