I will not respond to anything but a topped S&P. I have also sold Feb 1175 calls (undisclosed amount!) Excessive and persistant bullish sentiment, persistant low volatility, the likelihood of higher interest rates after the election, the uncertainty of the election, a 40& rise form the S&P low etc. All of these and some more factors have contributed to my confidence that the S&P has topped.
Hi James, What's the timeframe for your call? I.e., are we done with a bear market rally that lasted 15 months, or is this an IT top?
you know what? I cannot answer that right now. But the fact that I cannot answer it doesn't change my current strategy and position.
You've SOLD calls on the S&P with the market just bouncing off lows after a two day pullback, and Nortel blowing out earnings and up 20% after hours? And you intend to be trading for...how long? This would very possibly be the only pullback we'll see for weeks.
Yes, I've sold Feb 1175 calls, although I certainly did not say anything about selling them yesterday. I intend to be trading for..as long as I'm alive and kicking. I never put myself in a position where any trade can cause me harm. That's why I've made money every year for the last nine years.
Everything tops (or bottoms) on some time scale. Through Feb you may be right but beyond that time frame - if not sooner - I would be very reluctant to call it a top unless we see quite a bit of bad news .... Of course like you, I really dont care since I take on trades and positions which I am free to modify. Right now my models only show a short term pullback and I am long on selective issues that still have strength, short on others based on rotations.
On the futures you can go to www.cme.com , select market data/delayed/equity indexes/S&P Pit Traded Options.