Opciones calls sobre acciones en cartera

NEW YORK, April 20 (Reuters) - As U.S. crude prices dropped
below $0 for the first time ever on Monday, some options
investors were betting on a rebound. 
    Call options - used for upside participation - accounted for
around two-thirds of the 3.5 million options contracts traded
Monday on the United States Oil Fund LP <USO.P>, the largest
U.S. crude exchange-traded fund.
    Among Monday's biggest individual trades was a purchase of
18,514 July calls for 6 cents each that could be exercised, or
redeemed for USO shares, should the fund rise above $8. The
United States Oil Fund ended Monday's session 10.9% lower at
$3.75.
    The bullish wagers were likely driven by investors betting
that oil could mount at least a medium-term bounce after a rout
that has seen prices crushed on concerns of oversupply, analysts
said. 
    "There's a lot of interest because the levels that have been
reached (in oil) are extremely extended," said Arnim Holzer,
macro and correlation defense strategist at EAB Investment
Group, of Monday's call activity in USO.
    Although USO shares fell sharply on Monday, they did not
tumble nearly as much as expiring May futures for U.S. crude
<CLc1>, which plummeted 306% to -$37.63 a barrel. The fund had
rolled its positions earlier this month into June contracts
<CLc2> for West Texas Intermediate crude, which fell 18% to
$20.43 a barrel. 
    Still, implied volatility for puts, which are used for
downside protection, far outstripped that for calls - an
indication that many investors are wary of further declines to
come should concerns regarding oversupply and scarcity of
storage in oil markets persist.
    On Monday, 30-day implied volatility skew for USO jumped
nearly seven points to 29.2%, near its highest level over the
past year, according to Trade Alert. Skew measures the demand
for puts relative to calls. The jump in skew reflects a rising
premium for puts despite the brisk volume in calls.
    "As cheap as things have gotten on an absolute basis, there
are some concerns that next month could be similar to this
month," Holzer said.