How do US options traders “smirk” on China? Evidence from FXI options |
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Authors: | Jianhui Li Sebastian A Gehricke Jin E Zhang |
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Institution: | Department of Accountancy and Finance, Otago Business School, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand |
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Abstract: | In this paper, we study the implied volatility smirk (IVS) of options written on the FXI, the Financial Times Stock Exchange/Xinhua China 50 Index exchange-traded fund (ETF). Using the methodology of Zhang and Xiang (2008, Quant Financ, 8, pp. 263–284), we document the empirical characteristics of the level, slope, and curvature of IVS of the FXI options. We find that, on average, IVS becomes steeper and more convex as time to maturity increases. The level and curvature are usually positive, and the slope is negative. We provide evidence that the information in the quantified IV factors has some predictive power for the future monthly FXI ETF returns. |
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Keywords: | China equities FXI options FXI smirk implied volatility |
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