The Option Block 1509: Race Cars, Top Hats and Cleveland Cliffs..Oh My!

VIX spiked to ~22.5 Friday on AI/debt-financing jitters before equities and vol both partially reversed Monday.

• VIX spikes then fades: VIX cash hit ~22.5 intraday Friday (up from a 16 handle) before cooling; it traded around 18.25 on Monday, with 50,000+ VIX option contracts and heavy call buying (49,000 Oct 18 calls) plus a Nov 20 straddle trading at $4.55.
• Market rebounds post-selloff: After the worst week since mid-summer, S&P 500 rose ~0.5%, Nasdaq ~1.25%; SPX channeling between 7,600 and 7,800 ahead of Nov 4 midterms.

Themes, sentiment and reasons are AI-written paraphrases, checked so they never quote an episode. They may contain errors. Not investment advice. Episodes remain the property of their creators.