UPDATE: CME Targets International Growth As 1Q Profit Rises 90%

The head of CME Group Inc. (CME) said Thursday that overseas volume in key product areas such as currencies and energy could match those in North America as the exchange group focuses on organic global growth opportunities.

The world's largest futures exchange by volume drew 15% of its volume in the first quarter from outside U.S. trading hours--a proxy for overseas business--and the proportion in foreign exchange reached 34%.

Craig Donohue, chief executive, said on a post-earnings' call that international volume in foreign exchange, metals, energy and commodity products could become "commensurate" with those in North America, though he gave no timeframe for reaching that scale.

The international focus comes while CME sits out the latest round of industry consolidation, having spent more than $20 billion on acquisitions over the past four years.

The company said it planned no major acquisitions in the near term, and is focusing on organic growth and its partnerships with overseas exchanges, notably in emerging markets.

Earlier Thursday CME reported a 90% rise in first-quarter profit, with revenue soaring as market volatility spurred trading.

CME reported a profit of $456.6 million, or $6.81 a share, up from $240.2 million, or $3.62 a share, a year earlier. Excluding a tax adjustment, the latest quarter's earnings were $4.36 a share. Revenue jumped 20% to $831.6 million.

Operating margin widened to 63% from 59.8%.

Earlier this month, CME said its average daily trading volume jumped 19% to 13.8 million contracts, the second-highest quarterly volume ever.

CME shares were recently down 1.6% at 305.20.

-By Doug Cameron, Dow Jones Newswires; 312-750-4135; doug.cameron@dowjones.com

--Matt Jarzemsky contributed to this article.

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