Economics
Options Traders Pile Into $80 Oil Bets as Trump Wild Cards Mount
- Investors hold almost 137 million barrels worth of $80 calls
- Move comes as risks mount before U.S. sanctions deadline
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Traders are snapping up bets that Brent crude will rise to $80 a barrel as U.S. President Donald Trump mulls renewing sanctions on Iran while conflict roils parts of the Middle East.
Investors in Brent now hold almost 137 million barrels worth of $80 call options, 37 percent more than they did two weeks ago, according to data from the ICE Futures Europe exchange. The spike comes as options markets show their strongest call-bias since 2014, when oil traded above $100 a barrel. Brent last week also climbed to its highest level in more than three years.