Bears Crowd Semis, Autos Face Real-Economy Headwind

Options traders leaned heavily bearish on semiconductors this week. NVDA leads on both positive and negative options bets, reflecting the tug-of-war after chip stocks pulled back sharply. NVDA carries 12 active expiry dates in November alone, a sign of unusually dense near-term speculation.

MU (Micron Technology) drew the heaviest negative options flow across mid- and large-cap US stocks in the past seven days. Its RSI sits at 42, off recent lows, but bearish bets dominate. The stock is up 210% year-to-date, making it a prime target for profit-taking through puts.

QXO posted the lowest bullish options percentage of any large-cap name, with just 16% of bets tilted positive. Short interest is also elevated, with 15.6 days to cover.

CAT stands out for a different reason. Its 14-day RSI has dropped to 23.6, deeply oversold territory. Citi cut its target price this week. CAT expiries run weekly through December, suggesting traders are actively positioning around its upcoming earnings.

The real-economy backdrop adds fuel to the bearish autos tone. India recorded just 85,038 new car registrations in October 2026, the smallest October on record since 2017. That is a macro signal that matters for HMC (Honda), which reports on 6 November. ORTEX Alt Data shows Japanese car registrations running 10% below the same quarter last year, a dataset that leads Honda revenue by 65 days with a strong fit.

PSNY (Polestar) also reports 5 November. Dutch car registrations, a leading indicator for its revenue, are running 37% below year-ago levels.

RACE (Ferrari) options run weekly to December. Austrian car data, which leads Ferrari revenue with a weak fit, is down 75% versus the same quarter a year ago.

This is not financial advice.