Reacting to one of the worst weeks on Wall St, the Dow rebounded over 900 points to close at 9,387 on Monday. Coming off record highs over 75, the VIX finally came back down to earth closing just under 55 down 21%. The big rally's impetus early Monday morning as markets worldwide reacted positively to European government's interventions into the banking system, pouring billions worth of capitol into world banks. Echoing this tactic, Treasure Secretary Paulson is rumored to do something similar tomorrow. Dow futures are already reacting positively to the news up 192 points in early trading. The question remains however, with the economy still in turmoil, how long will this rally last?
The CBOE Correlation Index (KCJ) is close to the lowest level we have seen since it was first listed in 2007. The KCJ measures the implied movement of the S&P 500 components options, compared to the implied movement of the S&P 500 index options. Simply put, the higher the number, the more likely all stocks are going to move together. Conversely, a low number will be characterized by sector rotation, and flat markets; one sector moves higher, another moves lower. (Source: Access Hollywood) Correlation, for lack of a better term, is correlated with volatility. Not surprisingly, 30-day S&P 500 historical volatility is near the low level of 6.5%. Currently at 33.5, KCJ is sitting close to rock bottom, lower than where it was in 2007, (but not lower than where Lindsay Lohan was in 2007). So far this year, the market has been able to grind higher, characterized by leadership in FANG(Facebook Apple/Amazon, Netflix, Google) and sector rotation. A...
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