German and Italian natural gas futures listed on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) hit fresh highs in May amid a scramble in Europe to secure supplies in the months since Russia invaded Ukraine. 

European benchmark Title Transfer Facility futures saw 2.8 million lots traded last month, up 5% from April. ICE added that German Trading Hub Europe futures trading hit 13,500 lots, with  open interest reaching a new high of 31,030 lots on May 20. Open interest is the number of outstanding derivative contracts that serves as indication of trading activity.

Meanwhile, nearly 11,000 lots of Italian Punto di Scambio Virtuale (PSV) gas futures were traded. PSV open interest hit a new high of 23,089 lots on May 27. 

[Want to visualize Henry Hub, Houston Ship Channel and Chicago...