Dubai: Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME) is this month celebrating its fifth anniversary. Since its launch in June 2007, The Oman Crude Oil Futures Contract (DME Oman), the Exchange’s flagship contract, is now the most credible oil benchmark relevant to the Asian market. In 2012, trades on DME passed the 3 billion barrel mark, with a total of 3.478 million contracts (equivalent to 3.478 billion barrels) traded on the Exchange and annual average daily volumes growing at an annual compounded rate of 31 per cent. Volumes for DME Oman have surged in the first half of 2012, reaching a record 141,129 contracts (141.129 million barrels) in May, an increase of nearly 17,967 contracts over the previous record in April of the same year, and an impressive 78 per cent growth over the same period in 2011.