Yo, Pit Crazies,

Most of us can remember where we were on Sept. 11, 2001.

I was standing on the Pacific Coast Stock Exchange trading floor and watching the airplanes fly. almost dream-like, into the Twin Towers.

Trading was halted for the day, turned out to be the week, and my wife told me to come home.

Then everything just sucked for a while, but we pulled through.

***

These days, it continues to serve as a reminder that anything can happen in life and trading.

No one, and I mean no one, expected the big S&P 500 rallies we saw this week, but here we are.

SPX fiv-day chart with IVs on the lower chart

Now the question is …

Will it hold?

Like my Grandmother says, You never Know!

I am starting to count the trips to 4000 SPX like trips to the vegetable garden.

Not every day, but it sure feels like it.

We went from a 27 VIX this week to solid contango and a 22.80-ish close.

The way I see it, the rate news is out for now.  The Fed will raise at least 75 bps this cycle and any hint of inflation slowdown in the CPI number this week will tell the tale.  

If CPI comes in what folks expect, expect a VIX rout.

My SPYMaster strategy should do well – that’s why I’ve marked it as my Biggest Trading Opportunity of 2022.

Look for a Code Green prior to the CPI number to set up the trade.

The Rundown

Power Income Trader

Bill sold some Intel Corp. (Ticker: INTC) Sept. 30 30/28 put vertical spreads and notched a 47% gain.

Big Money Shopper

iShares Clean Energy ETF (Ticker: ICLN) Sept. 16 23 puts closed for a 60% gain.

Chargepoint Inc. (Ticker: CHPT) Sept. 9 17 calls closed for a 24% gain.

 

Option Shopper

Licia is at it again with a short term winner: ProShares Short SPX (Ticker: SPXU) Sept 9 16.5 puts closed for a 50% gain.

To Your Trading Success,

AG