Bears Vanish From S&P 500 Options as Put-Call Ratio Baffles Pros

  • Traders are using calls more than any time since 2009
  • Average short interest in U.S. stocks at lowest since 2014
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The post-election enthusiasm in the U.S. equity market is showing up in a curious way through options trading.

As volatility measured by the VIX index dives to levels unseen in more than two years and the S&P 500 Index climbs to fresh records, the number of bearish bets changing hands relative to bullish ones has fallen to the lowest since 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.