Natural Gas, Contango and UNG
I have talked at length in this space about the contango and negative roll yield issues that plague VXX. Periodically these discussions trigger a question from a reader about the impact of contango on some of the other ETPs. Just to be clear, as far a...
VXX Celebrates Third Birthday
It does not seem too long ago that I was the only person who thought VXX was worth mentioning. Known formally as the iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN, VXX was launched three years ago today, alongside of its sibling, the iPath S&P 500 ...
The VIX-VXX Minotaur Trade
[The following first appeared in the December 2010 edition of Expiring Monthly: The Option Traders Journal. I thought I would share it partly because I have an article, “Synthetic Seasonal VIX-VXX Arb,” which appears in the just published January 2...
ZIV Undeservedly Neglected
Much to my amazement, next week will mark the third anniversary of the launch of the first two VIX ETPs: the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) and the S&P 500 VIX Mid-Term Futures ETN (VXZ). Some may recall that investors were slow to w...
VXV Heralding a Return to Normalcy
With the political season heating up, it seemed like an opportune time to work “normalcy” into one of my posts again and what better way to do that than by putting under the microscope one of my favorite overlooked indices: the CBOE S&P 500 3-M...
The Year in VIX and Volatility (2011)
One of the most-loved charts I assemble each year is my retrospective look at the year in volatility. I already touched on some of the highlights of event volatility in text form in Expectations, Surprises and Fear in 2011, but this is one case in whic...
Italy’s Sovereign Debt Schedule and the VIX
When I think about the risks posed by the European sovereign debt crisis in 2012, the first thing that comes to mind is the huge amount of debt that Italy has to roll over next year. In yesterday’s staff meeting/run with Logan (What My Dog Can Tell U...
High and Low Volatility ETPs
Since Barclays/iShares launched the first VIX-based exchange-traded products (ETPs) three years ago next month, the landscape of volatility ETPs has been dominated by products that are based on VIX futures. This should come as no surprise to investors,...
Taking Profits in VIX Options (and ETPs)
Two hours into today’s session, the trading idea I mentioned yesterday, going long VIX puts, is doing quite well. The VIX Dec 27.50s are up more than 50% and the Dec 30s puts have advanced about 45%. One question that I believe is much trickier wit...
Interview at OptionPundit
Earlier this week, OptionPundit published the transcript of a recent interview: Bill Luby Talks to OptionPundit. The interview touches on a wide range of subject, but with an emphasis on the VIX and VIX-based ETPs, such as VXX, VXZ, XVIX. As always, V...
VIX Futures: A Tale of Two Backwardations
After yesterday’s New VIX Backwardation Record post, I thought it might be interesting to compare the VIX futures term structure during the past three months to that of the prior record, which spanned September to December 2008. The mechanics for gr...
