Trading got off to a slow start on Monday as volumes were low coming off of the extended Easter weekend. Liquidations were the story in Eurodollar futures as focus remained on the front end of the curve. Trading in the White contracts (EDK0-EDH1) represented about 62% of the total volume. In U.S. Treasuries, it was the 10-year (TY) contract that dominated, with almost 57% of the day’s total traded in TYK0 & TYM0.
Big Trades
Monday:
Blue Sep (E3U, EDU3) 98.75/99.00 put spread, paying 4 on 10K
Short Sep (E0U, EDU1) 99.00/99.25 put spread, selling 30K at 0.5 vs 99.715
EDM0 98.625/98.75 put stupid vs 99.625 calls, selling calls at 2, 40K
Tuesday:
EDM0 99.125/99.375 put spread 1x3, paying even for the 1 leg, 10K
5 Yr June (FVM0) 125/126/127 call fly, selling 30K at 14.5 vs 125’025
Green June (E2M, EDM2) 99.125/99.375/99.625 put fly, paying 5.5 on 10K
Quick Takes
1. Monday’s action in Eurodollars was muted and focused on liquidations. Here’s a good look at the action:
The down bars represent closing open interest, with a value of -1.0 suggesting all volume was decreasing open interest in that contract. As you can see, heavily weighted to closing position at the front of the curve.
2. The 5-year trade looks to be a liquidation. These were bought back in late March with futures trading slightly higher than their current levels. Could it be that this player is nervous about yields moving beyond 0.43% by the May 22 expiration? Or did they simply get bored with this trade, which isn’t uncommon with flies.
3. The Green June fly traded 5.5 for 10K on a block trade. Immediately after, it traded at 5 on the screen. It looks like the block seller quickly took advantage and lifted the screen offer. With all the focus on the front end of the curve, finding value in the deferred contracts can be difficult. It’s possible that some market participants don’t have accurate models set up for these contracts. Or it could be that the buyer was just impatient. Either way the seller probably doesn’t have any issues with that gift!