Chip Puts Pile Up Into Weekend

Semiconductors are drawing the heaviest bearish options bets in the US market this week. MU, AMD, NVDA and INTC all rank at the top of negative options flow screens over the past seven days.

RSI readings tell the same story. Micron sits at 31.3, Intel at 25.7, and AMD at 38.4. All three are in or near oversold territory. Options traders appear to be pressing those moves rather than fading them.

NVDA has the most crowded near-term expiry calendar. Weekly contracts run all the way through to January 2027. The density of expiry dates suggests active positioning across multiple time horizons, not just one-way hedging.

WOLF is a name to watch separately. Short sellers have been building positions in the troubled chipmaker, and its options chain now runs from the November 13 expiry through January 2027. ORTEX short data flagged rising bets against the stock this week.

MRNA carries a different signal. ORTEX's Index Rebalance Radar gives the biotech an 88% probability of joining the MSCI World in the November review. The announcement lands Wednesday. That implies $6.4 billion of forced buying, completed in roughly 1.2 days of normal volume. Options traders may already be positioning for that squeeze.

US October payrolls hit a record 159,293 thousand, their highest October reading since 1997. Strong labour data tends to lift rate expectations. That backdrop adds fuel to put demand across rate-sensitive tech names heading into next week.