Chicago Board to Trade Yield-Curve Derivatives

CHICAGO - The Chicago Board of Trade said it is developing futures and options on the U.S. yield curve.

The new contract will trade the yield spread between different maturities of Treasuries based on the most recent issues, said Pat Cantania, the board's senior vice president of marketing and product development.

The yield curve contracts will allow investors "to trade yields in three segments," Mr. Cantania said. "Two-to-fives, five-to-10s and 10s-to-30s."

No launch date has been set because the contracts are still being developed, Mr. Cantania said. But they are expected to be submitted to the board of trade's board of directors and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for approval this year, he said.

The new contracts are expected to attract over-the-counter users who do not trade spreads using current futures contracts for fear of basis risk.

The board also announced that it has named former Congressman Robert Michel, R-Ill., to its board of directors.

Mr. Michel, former minority leader of the House, will fill the unexpired term of Edward Madigan, who died last year. The term concludes in 1997.

The former congressman was first elected to the House in 1956 and served as Republican leader from 1980 until his retirement last year.

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