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SPY/SPX - $8 Billion Press to Downside Protection - 4X Expiry Institutional Protection (Hedging) reached an All-Time High on the September 16th Quad Witch Expiration. This position dwarfs prior hedging Highs by 103% and is rising by an additional $8 Billion added to the hoard of Puts Friday. Not only are the positions outsized - it was 308% of 2008's Hedging. _________________________________________________________________________________ Intense Volatility will return in September. Of Note, with the declining Volatility Complex, VX Hedging has not dropped within a concurrent Cost Correlation. Options Writers are set for 3.19% IV for September... which may portend significantly Higher VX on any significant change in arrangements. _________________________________________________________________________________ On to the SPX/SPY and what is ahead. Of Note, I am Using the SPX as Large traders and Institutions are most heavily positioned here. Levels for the SPY are contained below. Trader Sentiment began the Week at 18.1% Bullish & 53.3% Bearish for the next 180 Days. ISM Price Paid Component declined 34.6% on the latest print as Commodity Intermediate Inputs have declined significantly. Interest Rate Forwards are indicating the FOMC will be @ 4% by January. The short end of the Curve continues to confirm the Fed Fund Futures. The DX took a breather on the Effective Rate Tussle between the EU and US. Powell will not do anything less than 75Bps and should the CPI be above 8.1 - 8.2, odds favor Powell stepping up the odds of 100 BPS, anything below 8 and 75Bps will be the LIS. The Fed is "data dependent" - ie. they bought themselves time and have already indicated it will be, at minimum, several months of observing the Data and not one nor two. Market Internals were solid with 90% Up, 10 :1 Advance peaking at 17 : 1 Intraday. Breadth improved as well, not significantly, but an improvement pushing the Closing Basis above the 10-Week Moving Average. Friday's rally was broad as was Wednesday's. NQ's Up/Down was higher as well, with a slight broadening after coming very close to putting in a lower low. The Put/Call ratio fell from 1.01 on Tuesday to .80 on close Friday - a 3-day decline. The ViX has 19.46 wide open again as we move into Roll through Settle, expect a surprise soon. It is ahead. The VVIX came up to its Pivot and failed badly. Extreme awareness of the UST Curve and Futures is vital to success as we are seeing 4% come into our view. DX, same considerations, the Ball is in Powell's court now that LeGarde has made her tit for tat. FX Disruptions were not considered not all that long ago. I pointed out they would be arriving shortly back in August of 2021. Very large disruptions were promised and delivered. 100% Ditto Bonds and their impending implosions. Dung was Flung then, not so much now and it is quite far from over for Bonds. As for the Levels in Trade this week, they can be observed on the Weekly Chart in a larger context. For Sunday Globex / Monday, here are the levels: NQ - Range Expands from 12,438 to 12,866 with 12508 as the Pivot. SPY - Range Expands from 405.44 to 415.22 with 406.17 as the Pivot. The 407.37 Gap is filled. _________________________________________________________________________________ *Options have continued to play an important role in Price over the past decade. Presently, they drive prices significantly. I will produce a thorough explanation, in detail, in the next few days. It will include: 1. The 5 Greeks and how they function - Delta, Gamma, Theta, Vega & Rho. 2. Alpha and Beta relations from the Underlying to the Derivative. 3. The Yield Correlations. Have a great weekend, Good Luck on the Open - Trade Safe.
SP:SPX
by HK_L61
4
SPY / SPX / ES - $USD Smacked / 6E breaks Par - the LIFT The USD pulled back overnight on the ECB's 75 BPS Hike, until the October 21st FOMC Rate decision is announced the DXY can easily see downside pressure. Traders began to move against the Dollar as Major Asian Markets opened and again - ahead of the EU Session open @ 3 AM EST, by 3:30 AM EST. The Inversion lift was provided to the ES NQ YM RTY GC & SI @ 3 AM ET - straight up 20 Handles for the ES. Boom went the Stimulus in FX. Even Crude managed to lift over the 85.02 Pivot. Financials - XLF / NQBANK / KRE etc. are going to have a Stick Save day ahead. 1 & 2Yr Bills will see some much-needed consolidation after the short end has gone parabolic over since Wyoming Powell. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Yesterday's increase in Put activity provided the required Globex Squeeze and extension as upon the NYSE open there will be continued closing of Trades which have gone sideways. Sentiment and Positioning had swung to a sell-side weighting. Lael Brainard provided a pivotal comment - "The FED is aware of over-tightening." - this was all the Bid required to infer further "Pivot" chatter with respect to the Policy Cushion of overdoing tightening. 2.53% Fed Funds - 8.5% Inflation... overtightening? You do the Math. - it was all the Bulls needed to gain confidence in the Build Back Better Rally. __________________________________________________________________________________________ SPY Pivots are as follows for Friday: Trendline Support - 391.88 Baseline Supports - 395.22 / 396.44 / 397.61 Pivot for Higher - 401.56 provides a Throw over to 405.04 to 407.11 OR the .382 Fib of the recent High to Lows - it should remain overhead Resistance for today. 400.25 is the over / under into the open. Will late chasers see a hammer... not until the Puts are run off. Friday's Gap Fills come in at 77.22% - having been surpassed by Thursday @ 80.13%. Today may be quite different, the Gap does not need to fill today until after 11 AM EST, IF at all. Bots adore Gaps. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Are Institutions bidding Markets? No, they are not - Large Traders are, however. Above 400 on Friday and holding into the Close will provide "continuation thinking." There is just enough Liquidity returning to provide interest and Organic Buying. The Next Gen Squeeze awaits at 407.22 to 407.41. __________________________________________________________________________________________ This can run further as expectations have been set for a weaker CPI next Tuesday. Bullhorns have been blaring into the Bears Camp - they hear confirmation bias only to be dropped into the Dunk Tank time and again - a pattern that frankly repeats itself over and over. Bloomberg begins chortling on about "New Lows, 3400, Breaking 3600, Hawkish this/that" and it gains mindshare traction... quickly. Many traders are swing for the Triple when they would be far safer loading the bases with Singles, Balks, Walks, and chalk. Low Volume - let's leave it as Volumes are building. On Balance, Market Internals were improving off very low levels in the OSC's reaching Sub 300 with 388 and 475 being the Crash outliers from prior events. Summations held the Zero Line and turned in a clear Divergence. It remains a Bear Market IMHO until we see the 50 retake the 200. And speaking of EMA's/SMA's... they are very potent attractors - in particular defending 50/100 crosses. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Trade Safe through early September - it's not as many believed, 11/19 has been Higher over the last 20 years - will this be 12 or 9... we'll see - Magic 8 Balls aside, expect Higher VX @ 1.5 to 3% on either side of the Tape. Never discount the Effects of VOX ROLL?SETTLE timing. Good Luck to you. HK
AMEX:SPY
by HK_L61
9
NQ is in breakout mode (note the gap due to Sep to Dec contract)NQ has switched its contract on TV to Dec, looks like a gap up. Im short right here and some from the close. Today's close was into the wall last 10 min pump, closed below intraday highs = not bullish. Needs a gap up or we should see much lower levels tomorrow. Last few weeks we dump big on Friday's, will it repeat tomorrow? My bet is yes. Ideally we see a higher low tomorrow and retrace hard into last hour or 2 of the day and never look back, that would setup a move for much higher next week Its VIX OPEX on Wed, triple witching week 200MA here on 4h chart is the ideal target for this move P.S. Dont forget to like my posts, so it gets pushed up on TV for others to see as well. Thanks in advance!
CME_MINI:NQ1!
by RealTima
3
SPY SPX ES / Traders Flip the ScriptHigher lows are required to provide the Flip into Higher Markets off of the Lows at the 390.85 Level. 394 is backtesting Support 399.50 is the initial Resistance. Powell Speaks at 9:10 AM EST after - 8:30 AM EST to provide both Initial and Continuing Jobless Claims. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans speaks @ Noon, followed by Consumer Credit @ 3 PM EST. "We're committed to maintaining our Policy" Note - the Markets prefer stable to lower Rates, of late... this has not been present. Should Powell provide Happy Color and TNX begins to move lower. Powell's soothing IF there is to be such 399.50 squeeze comes into the Trade. The Counter-Trend can morph into a further Squeeze and Meltup. _______________________________________________________________________ Fed Vice Chair Lael Brainard spoke yesterday providing some Flip Syde to the Tape - covering all the bases with a positive Traders uptake. Large Traders took advantage off the recent lows and began bidding SPX for the squeeze while Retail began to follow their thesis of Lower Lows and a retest of the Lows - AAII reached nearly 51%. ________________________________________________________________________ X Sectors in the S&P staged a large relief rally with the exception being XLE for obvious reasons as Crude and Oil Majors were hammered lower. Crude ended the day down 5%+ while the DX was lower on EU Rate Decision front runs. We are one week away from VIX Roll beginning and it appears there is an early retreat for Time to M2/V2 aka October. The VIX Floor remains 20.50 / 28 the pivot for Higher. VVIX in decline creates a gush of the potential onrush of VX Bids - 93.58 is the Pivot. Bills, Notes, and Bonds saw a slight retreat, even TLT saw the 20 Year Yield provide reprieve - coming off the 3.75s for 20 Year Yields (Implied). DX can pull back to 108.50. ________________________________________________________________________ Market Internals during this shortened week, Wednesday was simply more Positive then Tuesday was Negative. NYSE TICKs were sporadic and inconsistent Tuesday and Wednesday firmed the Tick. Buying activity was not purely Sellers on Coverbuys, there was newer organic buying. A positive for the Buyers (Bulls) which may digest ahead of Friday's Expiry or simply explode higher on the cross of 399.50, Bulls do not want to lose 394.00 - and the Trendline will need to provide extreme support. Apple's big event... a sleeper IMHO. New Camera - Wide Angle. Price Points that will reduce their continuing Cult of Buyers. Marginal users are simply moving to Android and away from the Apple Ecosystem. They are discovering a better Value proposition for their needs - Apple's Global Market Share continues to decline markedly. Apple needs to see 160.25 - 156.50 as the Breakup Level. Calls remain in Balance for Friday @ 51.7% ________________________________________________________________________ Let's see how Powell presents this morning, he will drive the week end finish. Good Luck and Trade Safe.
AMEX:SPY
by HK_L61
3
NQ is at its resistance lineIts hard to call the bottom call from last night, as I mentioned only my gut feeling of the low being in, as the markets were on the verge of breakdown. "Its really Do or Die territory. My gut feel is telling me we will hold it, but you dont trade based on any feeling..." I did take 40 points and run and didnt trade much this am, working on something exiting, hope to share it in a month or two... So far we have bounce off the 12280 resistance zone, needs above this trend line for real breakout, for now its still in short gamma P.S. Dont forget to like my posts, so it gets pushed up on TV for others to see as well. Thanks in advance!
CME_MINI:NQ1!
by RealTima
2
SPY / SPX / ES - Shortened Week AheadAugust did not end well for Buyers. Rate Creep across the curve applied pronounced pressure. RISK OFF is in trade across all Sectors within the X Complex. TNX from a Rate perspective - Rate instability and lower rates? At present, No. Bond VX is kicking up. It is however not damaging Banks as of yet, Financials are hanging on... slightly. Will the VIX Spike to 38 to 41? The ES would need to collapse to and through 3600, SPY clearly to new lows. VVIX is seeing the out-of-control setup - Few Puts in SPY, Few participants in VIX Calls due to IV. Prices sit at the most Pivotal area. Volimes are the main takeaway. Cumulative NYSE TICK took us sideways into the Close. Is the selling slowing down... that will depend on whether we see compression this week within a trading range. Friday was a Trending Day. Can Buyers Create Balance here? It will require a SOH on the SELL SIDE. Market Internals need to HOLD. Look below and fail is open as well. 11 of the past 19 September's ended up with 8 ending Down. The past 20 years have been highly volatile and I find it a generational approach more relevant than the overall historical as HFT/ALGO Trading has become dominant with increased Volatility - It's my approach this September. Alladin will be extremely busy this Month - chalking up further gains for Blackrock. The Quarterly close will provide important answers to a Trend in decline at present. It is somewhat overstretched on OSCs, but Summation Indexes have more work to do. This can provide ever-increasing Volatility as we see the VIX Curve pricing in expanding VX for several months. VIX - % Contango SEP M1 @ 3.90% OCT M2 @ 1.80% NOV M3 @ 0.37% DEC M4 @ 3.30% JAN M5 @ 0.25% FEB M6 @ 0.82% MAR @ Par with FEB _________________________________________________________________________________________ Year to Date - August opened the Dunk Tank once Powell delivered his May FSR Objective affirmation for Asset Prices and Interest Rate Forward Guidance. Winners: Energy + 30.10 % Utilities + 5.64 % Losers: Consumer Non-Cyclical -6.55 % Financial -10.81 % Transportation -15.08 % Basic Materials -15.26 % Technology -31.79 % Healthcare -26.92 % Consumer Discretionary -26.06 % Services -21.44 % Capital Goods -20.45 % Retail -18.52 % A very brutal 2022 into the month of September - where Monthly, Weekly, and Daily timeframes are within poor Structure. August SPY Monthly provided a very nasty inverted Hammer. Sellers stepped up in spades at the Highs and Sold to the opening Print, and through the Opening Print - to close on lows. September's opening print did not hold the lower Body Bar on Friday - a poor close to the week with options settlement into the Cash Session. Buyers were non-responsive at best. Sellers sold through on increasing volume for the 3rd consecutive day. September's big events are ahead - the 13th CPI. Powell will provide color commentary on the 21st. _________________________________________________________________________________________ Last Month's Price action served to expand the range for Major Indices. Monthly timeframes continue to hold Lower Highs, not a good look from the June Lows at present. The 379.92 Level is the .382 and Pivotal for the Month of September, it is presently the initial implied Lower Range for the SPY on the confirmed break and closing below the Trend Line Support. SPY 50% resides at 349.12 - the opening to a larger and lower low - into the Gap Fill @ 338.50. Obviously larger targets below on increased panic and further Selling. Price is currently sitting on top of what was prior support. _________________________________________________________________________________________ I have cautioned for some time, Rates were a distraction too far larger issues within the Global Economy. Repeatedly. There are 3 legs to this stool. Forward EPS, which remains incredibly high based upon earnings projections and their required adjustment too far lower expectations. These have been partially priced in after Powell dropped the Hammer. There is more work to do there. QT remains a recycling operation - in through the out door with the appearance of an aggressive FED - while advancing CBDC via FED NOW/FED DIRECT at an increasing pace for Rollout. This and 41067 won't bode well for Crypto IMHO. Simply adding to the avalanche of impending exits which can be triggered by any panic in trade. _________________________________________________________________________________________ After large declines for all Major Indices... we've never seen a real Flush down panic, not one. This is a once in 100 years Bear Market and it will be difficult to navigate as the Algorithms are growing increasingly predatory. Be careful out there, reduce Size and be on guard for increasing VX in September. Bearish Sentiments @ AAII are rising to 50.6% again. Stop runs on trailers and catching traders offsides should be anticipated. We will see if the breakdown hammers this lower or price can manage to consolidate in a larger range this week - expanding to the downside but providing outsized squeezes based on the Gamma / Delta. _________________________________________________________________________________________ A Break of 388.96 has the potential and higher probability of creating a massive flush down and panic move to the downside. Price is currently sitting on top of DOM Support or what many refer to as a Volume Node, I'm old, Depth of Market (DOM) is my preferred nomenclature. 3 Weeks of selling favors the Sellers - expected moves will produce lower Highs in Trend. Daily DT is another large Lower Low. The Daily TF is the confluence with the Trendline @ 390.85 - BREAKING THIS will get nasty. Buyers will absolutely need to defend early this Week, 399.50 may limit the upside in the Range. 379 to 399.50 is the Larger Range this week. 408.25 breaks a Potential Bear Flag. Sector Support appears to be a Risk OFF in ALL Sectors. HYG will provide leading indications as will XLF - breakdowns here would be very NEGATIVE. Can Buyers consolidate here... we will see. Take care and be cautious - trade Safe, Lower highs in the XLK will provide entry into the Trend.
AMEX:SPY
by HK_L61
5