M. Levy, “Loss aversion and the price of risk,” Quantitative Finance (forthcoming):
Abstract: This paper derives a simple theoretical relationship between the degree of loss aversion, the concavity/convexity of the value function, and the equilibrium market price of risk. We show that while the degree of loss aversion is key in determining the market price of risk, the convexity/concavity of the value function is much less important in this respect. The theoretical relationship obtained is tested empirically by using international data from…
Volatility Tracker for the week of September 8, 2009
The biggest mover last week on the volatility front was gold, as the “gold VIX” (GVZ) closed 40% higher. [2,3] Recall that when equity index prices rise, implied volatility typically falls; this inverse relationship does not hold for gold and many other commodities. On the contrary, the volatility implied by option prices will often rise with commodity price increases -a state of affairs with significant implications for option traders. We are short…
Although the major equity indexes are highly correlated, they tend to diverge in meaningful ways on a day-to-day basis. The same is true for the implied volatility indexes that track equities. It’s also common for equities and implied volatility to move inversely on a daily basis – the expectation is that, most of the time, if the S&P 500 closes up, the VIX is likely to close down.
It’s very uncommon for both the equity indexes to all close higher and…
Volatility Tracker for the week of July 27, 2009
Equities continued to rally last week in defiance of any “overbought” technical readings. [4] Nevertheless, until the contrary signals noted last week abate – specifically, the term structure of volatility futures [7] and the VIX Premium Ratio [8] – I don’t anticipate much upside potential. Note that the Nasdaq 100 Implied Volatility Index (VXN) rose on the week [2] – though this is just as likely due to out of the money…
I propose the following rule of thumb for VIX interpretation:
If you think some VIX movement entails a proposition p and movement in the other volatility indexes VXN, RVX, and VXD doesn’t entail p, you shouldn’t believe p.
Why accept this rule? Because equity indexes are highly correlated, especially over the very short term, and volatility indexes are calculated using the same methodology, such that in the case of a divergence of one volatility index from the others, the majority rule. Here’s a…
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
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