Volatility Views 158: Is VIX Without Contango Even Possible?

Volatility Review: A look back at the week in vol

• VIX Cash: High: 15.13 - Low: 12.41
• VVIX: 82.12
• S&P 30-day realized Vol: 10
• VIX Options: Total: 7.84m (5.84m Calls, 2.01m Puts)
• Single largest VIX Options trade in History. Sold VIX July 17-23 1x2 call spread to close. Bought July 17-23 1x2 call spread to close play $0.11 - essentially rolling out to July. Size was 1.08M contracts total.
• Crude Oil: Crude bears are starting to show their claws again.
• OVX 31.67 - OIV 32.18
• This comes after today may set a near-record 9th week of gains for the most consecutive weekly gains in at least 30 years.

Volatility Voicemail: Listener questions and comments

• Question from Andrew Grove - Are there any packaged products out there that will replicate a long or short delta-neutral straddle position? The key part I believe would be the adjustments as the product would require multiple adjustments to remain delta neutral. I have listened to your program for a long time and come to the conclusion that delta-neutral is the best way to capture volatility in the marketplace right now. But I do not want to tie up all of my capital and all of my time managing and adjusting one trade. I would prefer to buy or sell something that handled the lion’s share of the work for me. If there was some slippage on the execution I could live with it as the ultimate cost of using a packaged product vs. doing it myself. Thoughts? Am I crazy? I would love to get the old VolX guys opinion on this as well if possible since I assume they have insight into this issue.