The name palladium comes from the Greek goddess Pallas (Athena), whose wooden statue in Troy safeguarded the city. Legend had it that as long as the statue was kept within the city it could not be conquered. Today, it is mined with platinum and produced as a by-product of nickel mining. It is the lightest and lowest-melting member of the platinum metals group. The metal is used as a catalyst and in alloys because it is malleable and won’t tarnish at ordinary temperatures. By far, the largest usage of palladium is in telephone equipment, but it is also used for jewelry, dental work, surgical instruments, and watch-making. The Exchange has introduced an Asian palladium futures contract, which will trade solely on the CME Globex® electronic trading system.

The size of each contract is 500 grams and prices are quoted in U.S. dollars and cents per ton.

The contract is cash settled, and the final settlement price is the floating price calculated for each contract month.