Option Block 786: Europeans Make VIX Slidey and Weak

TRADING BLOCK Most active indices: VIX - 352k, SPY - 1.65M, SPX - 567k Most active equity options: LLY, NIO, AAPL, FB, GE, BAC, TSLA, AMD, BAB, MSFT OCC February volume down 25.9% after strong 2018     ODD BLOCK Put selling in Kraft Heinz Co (KHC) Puts trading in General Electric Company (GE) More puts trading in Kroger Co (KR)       MAIL BLOCK #QOTW: Everyone in our audience thought 2019's #options volume would eclipse 2018's record volume. But, through February, ADV is down nearly 19% from last year. 2019 is still young so we thought we'd take your pulse again  - will 2019 beat 2018's record  5.1B #options contracts? - Yes - No Question from Tosaw Client - I have a client and listener who asked me an interesting question we can talk about on the show. Why is a call calendar (both above the price of the underlying) more expensive than a put calendar on GOOGL and CRM? This could be a really good discussion.       AROUND THE BLOCK This Week in the Market: Mar 8 - Unemployment