Triple witching hour

Triple witching hour

Triple witching hour is the last hour of the stock market trading session (3:00-4:00 P.M., New York Time) on the third Friday of every March, June, September, and December. Those days are the expiration of three kinds of securities:

* Stock index futures.
* Stock market index options.
* Stock options.

The simultaneous expirations generally increases the trading volume of options, futures and the underlying stocks, and occasionally increases volatility of prices of related securities.

With the introduction of

* Single stock futures expiring on the same days, triple witching has become quadruple witching [cite web|title=Quadruple Witching |url=http://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/quadruplewitching.asp |publisher=Investopedia]

Concept

The term "triple witching" is conventionally thought to originate from the three witches in Shakespeare's play "Macbeth". While the terms "double witching" and "quadruple witching" are sometimes used too, it doesn't carry the same foreboding connotation as "triple witching". The phrase is intended to connote the extra volatility leading up to the event resulting from the expiration dates of three financing instruments.Fact|date=December 2007

Uses

Often considered industry jargon.

ee also

*Program trading

Notes


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • triple witching hour — the last hour of trading on the New York Stock Exchange on the four Fridays each year when stock options, stock index futures, and options on such futures simultaneously expire: regarded as a time of extreme volatility in trading. [1985 90] * * * …   Useful english dictionary

  • triple witching hour — tri′ple witch′ing hour n. bus the last hour of trading on the New York Stock Exchange on the four Fridays each year when stock options, stock index futures, and options on such futures simultaneously expire: regarded as a time of extreme… …   From formal English to slang

  • triple witching hour — the last hour of trading on the New York Stock Exchange on the four Fridays each year when stock options, stock index futures, and options on such futures simultaneously expire: regarded as a time of extreme volatility in trading. [1985 90] * * * …   Universalium

  • triple witching hour — noun The final hour of trading during which three types of derivatives contracts expire …   Wiktionary

  • triple witching hour — The four times a year that the S&P futures contract expires at the same time as the S&P 100 index option contract and option contracts on individual stocks. It is the last trading hour on the third Friday of March, June, September, and December,… …   Financial and business terms

  • triple witching hour — /ˌtrɪp(ə)l wɪtʃɪŋ aυə/ noun a day when three major types of futures contract fall due at the same time COMMENT: In the USA, this is the last hour of trading on the third Friday of the months of March, June, September and December, when futures… …   Dictionary of banking and finance

  • the triple witching hour — UK US noun [S] INFORMAL STOCK MARKET ► on a stock market, the last hour of trading when three types of derivatives contracts end. These derivatives are stock index futures, index options, and stock options: »Traders expect a difficult day on… …   Financial and business terms

  • Triple witching hour — The four times a year that the S&P futures contract expires at the same time as the S&P 100 index option contract and option contracts on individual stocks. The New York Times Financial Glossary …   Financial and business terms

  • triple witching hour — The third Friday of each March, June, September, and December, when stock index options, futures, and individual stock options all expire at the same time. This makes for very volatile trading conditions …   Big dictionary of business and management

  • Witching hour (disambiguation) — Witching hour may refer to the following:*Witching hour is the time when supernatural creatures such as witches, demons and ghosts are thought to be at their most powerful, and black magic at its most effective. *In United States investing,… …   Wikipedia

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