MGEX ELECTRONIC TRADING HOURS AND LAUNCH DATE ANNOUNCED MINNEAPOLIS - October 4, 2004

Contact: Sarah Clemenson 612-321-7143

The Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) announced this week that it will offer nighttime electronic trading hours for MGEX Hard Red Spring Wheat futures and options in addition to daytime open outcry. These contracts will trade electronically along side the MGEX grain and oilseed index contracts on the Chicago Board of Trade‚s electronic trading platform - e-cbot ® powered by LIFFE CONNECT®.

The official launch date of MGEX Hard Red Spring Wheat night trading and the MGEX grain and oilseed index contracts is December 15. MGEX index products based on Data Transmission Networ's (DTN) index calculations include the Hard Red Spring Wheat Index (HRSI), Hard Red Winter Wheat Index (HRWI), Soft Red Winter Wheat Index (SRWI), National Corn Index (NCI) and the National Soybean Index (NSI).

"We are looking forward to December marking revolutionary changes at MGEX as we begin offering electronic trading to complement our already solid hard red spring wheat futures and options as well as the addition of the fully electronic grain index contracts," said Kent Horsager, MGEX president and chief executive officer. "This move generates extensive benefits by creating a single point of access for the agricultural markets and providing new spread opportunities for astute market users."

The MGEX Hard Red Spring Wheat futures contract will continue to trade by open outcry from 9:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Central Time (CT), Monday through Friday. The contract will trade electronically from 7:32 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. CT, Sunday through Friday. The MGEX Hard Red Spring Wheat options contract will continue to trade by open outcry from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. CT, Monday through Friday. It will trade electronically from 7:34 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. CT, Sunday through Friday. Electronic trading for hard red spring wheat and the grain and oilseed index contracts will take place Sunday through Friday.

MGEX, established in 1881, is the only market for hard red spring wheat, National Corn Index, National Soybean Index, Hard Red Spring Wheat Index, Soft Red Winter Wheat Index and Hard Red Winter Wheat Index futures and options. For more information, visit www.mgex.com.

Notes to the editor:
e-cbot ® is a registered service mark of the Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, Inc. and is registered in the United States.

LIFFE CONNECT ® is a trademark of LIFFE Administration and Management and is registered in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United States and the United Kingdom, is a registered Community Trade Mark, and is the subject of a pending application for registration in Japan.