Week 31: Fed Holds, Microsoft Surges, Markets Recover
A volatile week of central bank signals, hawkish bond moves and swinging tech earnings resolved in a positive weekly close and three of four portfolios beat the S&P 500. →
Week 28 (6–10 July) was anything but quiet. Renewed tensions between the United States and Iran dominated the headlines and injected sharp intraweek swings across equities, bonds, oil and gold. Despite the turbulence, US equity markets managed to close the week in positive territory: the S&P 500 gained around 0.7% on the week and now sits +10.4% year-to-date. For options traders, the week offered a compelling combination of geopolitical risk spikes and ultimately orderly market behaviour — an environment that tests discipline and rewards structured positioning.
A volatile week of central bank signals, hawkish bond moves and swinging tech earnings resolved in a positive weekly close and three of four portfolios beat the S&P 500. →
Alphabet and Tesla missed the mark, Brent briefly crossed $100, and equity markets fell for a second consecutive week: yet the combined portfolio ended the week virtually flat. →
A quieter macro backdrop gave way to late-week selling in technology — but strong earnings from banks and a resilient vol structure kept three portfolios close to the index while one stood apart. →
A week of falling volatility and flattening term structures rewarded systematic positioning — but tactical gamma trades faced headwinds. →
A week of falling volatility and flattening term structures rewarded systematic positioning — but tactical gamma trades faced headwinds. →