Syz the moment

SPX vs VXTLT (inverted) needs little commenting. Source: TME

Asset managers have aggressively increased their VIX futures shorts to the highest level since July 2024. In other words, funds are betting heavily on continued low stock market volatility. Such extreme short VIX positioning often leaves markets vulnerable to sharp volatility spikes if sentiment turns. A similar setup occurred in July-August 2024, when a sudden shift in risk appetite drove a nearly -10% market drop. Are we heading for a pullback? Source. Global Markets Investors

Source: Equity clock, The Market Ear

We’ve seen a massive reset in bond volatility since the Liberation Day chaos. US Treasuries yields have gone nowhere, but at these levels owning some bond volatility offers limited downside with asymmetric upside. Source: The Market Ear, LSEG

Is volatility "too low"? In each of the last 8 times this happened, $SPX was higher a month later. Source: Subu Trade

Gold is the "everything hedge", but if you are looking for global equity hedges, then VIX looks relatively more interesting compared to chasing gold here. Source: TME, LSEG

Volatility in Bitcoin has slid from nearly 60% earlier this year to roughly 30%, the lowest level on record. Analysts led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said this dynamic implies a fair value near $126,000, a target they expect could be reached by year-end, according to The Block. A major driver of the decline in volatility has been corporate treasuries, which now hold over 6% of Bitcoin's total supply. JPMorgan compared the phenomenon to the post-2008 bond market, where central bank quantitative easing dampened swings by locking assets into balance sheets. Source: Yahoo Finance, Coindesk

Source: Charlie Bilello