Investors should bet on a rebound on the UK's FTSE by selling April puts to fundthe purchase of calls, strategists at Societe Generale write in a note, as theybelieve that recent weakness in the market has been overdone.
The FTSE 100 has fallen 3.1 percent so far this month, and its poorperformance has left the price of protection against falls on the index - theskew - looking expensive.
The fall month to date is, "mainly due to BP being dragged down byRussian stories, Vodafone losing its speculative appeal and Miningcompanies being hit by China growth concerns," the strategists write in a note.
"We think that as the worries on Russia/Crimea fade, stocks like BP shouldrecover, while on Metals & Mining a lot of the bad news (is) priced in."
Societe Generale recommends taking advantage of the high price of puts - orprotection against falls - by selling them at the 6,300 level with an Aprilexpiry, and using the proceeds to buy 4.5 times as many bets that the marketwill rise, or calls, at the 6,900 level for the same expiry. The FTSE 100currently trades at 6,595.
Reuters messaging rm://alistair.smout.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net
BP (BP.)
Vodafone (VOD)
