S&P 500 Index Options - SPX

		SPX
		SPX 1344.90 19.36 XSP 134.49 1.94 BXM 879.51 4.38 PUT 1156.75 5.19 VIX 17.10 -0.88 Delayed Quotes

Since 1983 investors have used options on the benchmark S&P 500^® (SPX^SM) Index for a variety of purposes, including investing, hedging, income, asset allocation, and the management of risk.

Key features of SPX options include:

• Large Notional Size -- around $120,000 per Contract in November 2010 (10 times that of SPDR options))
• No Early Exercise of SPX Options - European-style Exercise
• Cash-settlement with No Delivery of Stocks or ETFs
• Price and Quote Transparency with Competitive Auction Markets for Leading Option Contracts
• Daily Mark-to-market for SEC-regulated securities
• Clearance of Transactions is guaranteed by the Options Clearing Corporation
• Open Interest for SPX options was 15.3 million in November 2010 (an increase of more than 1020% when compared to December 2000)

• Average Daily Volume for SPX options rose from 87,286 in 2000 to 783.768 in Jan - Nov 2011.

• Potential for High Premium Income with Writing of SPX Options. The CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index (BXMSM) [ link to www.cboe.com/BXM ] simulates the selling of SPX options on a monthly basis. Over the past 22 years, the BXM Index has had an average of around generated gross premiums that averaged around 1.8% per month, and had a record high 8.1% gross monthly premium on November 21, 2008. (Please note that the net return often is much less than the gross premium.)

• Potential for Relatively High Returns with Writing of SPX Options. Both the BXM and PUT [link to microwebsites ] Indexes have had relatively strong returns over more than two decades.

(June 30, 1986 - Nov. 30, 2010). Sources: CBOE, Bloomberg and Citigroup Fixed Income Indexes Please read the important risk disclosures at the bottom of this webpage before investing.

• Potential for Lower Portfolio Volatility with Writing of SPX Options. Both the BXM and PUT [link to microwebsites ] Indexes have had lower volatility than the S&P 500 and some other leading stock indexes over more than two decades.

(June 30, 1986 - Nov. 30, 2010). Sources: CBOE, Bloomberg and Citigroup Fixed Income Indexes Please read the important risk disclosures at the bottom of this webpage before investing.

Investors appreciate many features of the SPX options, including:

• the fact that the options are tied to the world's leading benchmark for institutional investors;
• SPX options are powerful, flexible tools that allow investors to synthetically adjust their positions to a 500-stock portfolio;
• these listed options minimize counterparty risk - they are guaranteed by The Options Clearing Corporation.
• there is price discovery in competitive, SEC-regulated auction markets.

More Links

Spreadsheets with Historical Price Data

• Introduction
• Charts
• Strategies
• Historical Data
• SPX Options Product Specifications
• Volume and Put/Call Ratios
• Testimonial Quote
• Stocks in S&P 500 Index

The CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index (BXM^SM) is designed to represent a proposed hypothetical buy-write strategy. Like many passive indexes, the BXM Index does not take into account significant factors such as transaction costs and taxes and, because of factors such as these, many or most investors should be expected to underperform passive indexes. Investors attempting to replicate the BXM Index should discuss with their brokers possible timing and liquidity issues. Transaction costs and taxes for a buy-write strategy such as the BXM could be significantly higher than transaction costs for a passive strategy of buying-and-holding stocks. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Standard & Poor's®, S&P®, and S&P 500® are registered trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. and are licensed for use by the Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated (CBOE). CBOE, not S&P, calculates and disseminates the BXM Index. The CBOE has a business relationship with Standard & Poor's on the BXM and PUT Indexes. CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite IndexSM BXMSM are servicemarks of the CBOE. The methodology of the CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index is owned by CBOE and may be covered by one or more patents or pending patent applications.

Options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors. Prior to buying or selling options, a person must receive a copy of Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options(ODD). Copies of the ODD are available from your broker, by calling 1-888-OPTIONS, or from The Options Clearing Corporation, One North Wacker Drive, Suite 500, Chicago, Illinois 60606. The information in these materials is provided solely for general education and information purposes and therefore should not be considered complete, precise, or current. Many of the matters discussed are subject to detailed rules, regulations, and statutory provisions which should be referred to for additional detail and are subject to changes that may not be reflected in these materials. No statement within these materials should be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell a security or to provide investment advice. Any strategies discussed, including examples, do not include commissions, dividends, margin, taxes, and other transaction costs. However, these costs will affect the outcome of transactions and should be considered. S&P 100 and S&P 500 are registered trademarks of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., and are licensed for use by the Chicago Board Options Exchange, Inc. (CBOE). The "Russell 2000 Index is a registered trademark of Frank Russell Company. The Nasdaq 100 is a registered mark of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. "Dow Jones SM", Dow Jones Industrial AverageSM", "Dow Jones Transportation AverageSM," and "Dow Jones Utility AverageSM" are service marks of Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and have been licensed for certain purposes by the CBOE. LEAPS, FLEX, FLexible EXchange, CBOE, Chicago Board Options Exchange and OEX are registered trademarks of CBOE, and Long-term Equity AnticiPation Securities^TM and SPX^TM are trademarks of the CBOE.