Parched Order Flow Providers Pray To Fed For Rain

  • February 28, 2001
  • Tony Saliba

As
the trading week hits its midpoint on this Wednesday, options players
are apt to question if it, in fact, ever really began.
Order flow continues to fall off its already depressing pace.
I use the metaphor “fall off” instead of “dry up,” because desert
levels have already been achieved. Today,
order flow is registering a mere 1.4 on a scale of 1 to 10, with 2.6 being our
30-day moving average. 

A possible
storm-cloud can be seen on the horizon, as the rain-god Greenspan speaks today.
Many pundits expect him to institute an impromptu interest rate cut,
which might rally investors to come back into the markets.
Other pundits deny this, and we options practitioners worry that any such
“non-action” by the Fed may evaporate order flow even more.

Volatility has
come in today as the underlying market remains rather flat.
Tech activity is characteristically highest, but nothing within this
sector stands out as anomalous.

Here are
today’s numbers…

Pre-open
order volume was light this morning. Overall, call sellers led buyers at 3:2,
while put sellers beat out buyers at 3:2.  In pre-bell activity,
(
JNPR |
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call sellers outnumber buyers 2:1. 
(
QCOM |
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call buyers showed up leading sellers 7:2. 

(
MOT |
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call buyers dominated sellers 3:1. 
(
RAD |
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call sellers led buyers 3:1.
(
EMC |
Quote |
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News |
PowerRating) call sellers outnumber buyers 2:1.
(
BRCD |
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call buyers led sellers 4:1. 



First
hour order volume remained very light this morning. Overall, call sellers led
buyers at 3:2, while put sellers beat out buyers at 3:2.  In pre-bell
activity,
(
BRCM |
Quote |
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PowerRating) call sellers
outnumber buyers 3:1. 
(
SEBL |
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call buyers showed up leading sellers 7:2. 
IBM call buyers dominated sellers 8:1.
(
INTC |
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call sellers led buyers 2:1.
(
T |
Quote |
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News |
PowerRating) call sellers outnumber buyers 2:1. 

(
ARBA |
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call buyers led sellers 3:1.



Greenspan’s 
interest rate orchestrations will have much to say to both stock market
and options market practitioners. We
should all pay attention to today’s and future decisions. 

In the meantime,
investors play the waiting game. Our
engines are continuously on and searching for ripe fruit.

In the
meantime, keep sending me those good questions. 
Write me at: tonys@tradingmarkets.com

 

 

 

 

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