Blog Archives
What Ever Happened to Mayberry?
November 22, 2010
Good morning. There was conflicting news in the market last week that had the market moving fairly violently on an intraday basis, only to close almost exactly unchanged. The SPY closed up a whole .09, at 120.29, after trading as low as 117.59 on Tuesday. The VIX closed down a solid 12% at 18.04, reflecting confidence that nothing bad will happen in the upcoming Thanksgiving week, or maybe for the rest of the year. Normally that would be the case, quiet trading before and after the holiday, but the recent few years have been anything but normal.
Escalation Clause
November 8, 2010
Good morning. Huge gains for the market last week, with the SPY’s up 3.6% to close at 122.72. This was primarily due to the announcement by the Fed on Wednesday that they were going to peg the so-called quantitative easing (QE II) at around $70B per month to a total of $600B. I think this number is in excess of the “street” number of $500B and I suspect the $70B per month is a little more aggressive than most thought before the announcement.
Backfire
September 27, 2010
This week is the last chance for you to register for this great AND FREE seminar: If you are interested in learning more about my managed money program, the Protected Index Program (PIP), PTI Securities & Futures is hosting a no obligation, no-pressure, complimentary In-Office Protected Index Program Seminar on Saturday, October 2nd, 2010, in a classroom overlooking the CBOE at PTI’s Chicago Loop Office from 9:00am to noon. A continental breakfast, coffee bar and classroom materials will be provided. Topics covered include: review of option basics, investment program objectives, diversification solutions, SPY basics, index portfolio examples, option time decay and PIP portfolio example, strategy expectations and objectives and longer-term fixed income products. Space is limited and all attendees must register at www.PTISecurities.com/Education.htm – Come out, have a cup of coffee with me, and meet some of PTI Securities’ experts.
Good morning. It was another positive week for the market last week, or actually was a very strong Friday after a lackluster first four days. The SPY closed up 2.33 (2.1%) on the week to finish at 114.82, all but one cent of that advance coming on Friday. The economic numbers had been generally positive for the week, and when the Durable Goods number on Friday came in less than forecast in total, but better with the Transportation orders out, the market ran to the upside.
The Bottom Line
June 7, 2010
Good morning. One of the few calendar, or seasonal, type plays in the market that has been most consistent since the early 1980’s (time I started in the trading business) has been the relative lack of volatility in the market from essentially the May options expiration through Memorial Day and even until the 4th of July. When I remember the years when I had 11 traders trading in our group on the floor of the CBOE and how difficult it was to not end up long premium entering a time of holidays, time off, graduations, etc. Not this year, it seems.
Asia, Greece and More
February 16, 2010
Good morning. It was a very interesting week for the market last week. The SPY advanced 1.38 (or .9%) on the week to close at 108.66, after actually trading lower on last Friday than the close of the week before. It was actually a fairly impressive rally off the lows last Friday, as the low opening was associated with negative market news from both Europe and Asia.