November Inflation Rates Leave Room and Reason for a Rate Hike Whether or not the U.S. saw any inflation last month is largely a matter of perspective. On a core basis (not counting food and energy) we did. When the plummeting price of gasoline is factored in though – despite lingering high prices in grocery stores – consumers weren't impacted...
Calendar Spreads Explained A calendar spread is simply a two-option trade that not only has a price-movement element to it, but also a time-based element. It's not entirely unlike a normal credit spread or debit spread, but the two options used to enter calendar spreads have differing expirations that effectively predict a particular price for the underlying stock or index...
What is the Volatility Index (VIX), and How do I Use It? The CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) — often just referred to as the "VIX" — is a gauge of future (predicted) volatility for the S&P 500 over the course of the coming 30 days. It's based on the price of a basket of S&P 500 index options …...
November Retail Sales, Producer Inflation Bolster Case for Rate-Hike Any lingering hopes that the Federal Reserve wouldn't raise interest rates when it has a chance to next week suffered Friday on the heels of news regarding last month's producer price inflation and retail spending. Both were strong enough – and in some ways better than expected – to bolster an...
Put/Call Ratio: What Is It, and How is It Used? A put/call ratio is simply a comparison – a ratio – of the number of put options that trade on any given day relative to the number of call options that exchange hands that same. There are several closely-watched put/call ratios… some that are based on all the options that...
Put/Call Ratio: What Is It, and How is It Used? A put/call ratio is simply a comparison – a ratio – of the number of put options that trade on any given day relative to the number of call options that exchange hands that same. There are several closely-watched put/call ratios… some that are based on all the options that...
Gold Prices May Be Poised for Near-Term Bounce, But Long-Term Trend Remains Grim For the first time in a long time, gold prices (GLD) aren't getting kicked around with oil prices (USO). It's not an entirely surprising premise; the underlying dynamic and fundamentals of the two commodities are plenty different. But, for the bulk of 2015, traders have kept oil...
Option Trading: Butterfly Spreads A butterfly spread is a four-option trade (though only three strikes are used; two of the four are duplicates) often entered on the premise that the underlying stock or index will move little to none before the options involved in the trade expire. In other words, it's considered a neutral position, and the trade itself can...
Option Trading: Butterfly Spreads A butterfly spread is a four-option trade (though only three strikes are used; two of the four are duplicates) entered on the premise that the underlying stock or index will move little to none before the options involved in the trade expire. In other words, it's considered a neutral position, and the trade itself can lose...
Job Growth is "Good Enough" for Fed to Hike Rates A rate hike has been on the Federal Reserve's radar for quite some time, though most investors have presumed — and probably wisely so — Janet Yellen and her fellow Fed governors were waiting on November's unemployment data and job growth numbers before mentally committing to a decision. With that...
