Home Options EEMReports

EEM

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETFClose $64.26EOD only

Max Pain

$64.50

Next expiry May 22, 2026

Expected Move

±$1.66

2.6% from close

Price Gap

+0.24

Distance to max pain

IV Rank

Middle-high premium

P/C OI

1.73

Slightly put-heavy

Consensus

5.0/10

Range bias

Published snapshot: May 19, 2026 close

End-of-day snapshot

This page reflects EEM options positioning from the latest published market-close snapshot. Intraday price and contract changes are not displayed.

Published Snapshot

May 19, 2026 close

EEM Directional Report

Analysis based on market close May 15, 2026

Directional Theta Gang Flow Earnings Consensus

Historical consensus-supported lens with full content, report chain context, and metric rail.

You are viewing an older report from May 15, 2026. A newer directional report is available for May 19, 2026.

View latest report

Outlook

EEM in bearish flow regime with gamma pinning at $62. Spot above max pain, bias to drift lower toward support. Conflicted but range-bound outlook with bearish lean.

Confidence:

5 / 10

Base 5; -1 GEX/flow contradict, +1 gamma pinning, -0.5 spot distance MP, +0.5 VIX 18. Net neutral.

Supports: Gamma pinning $62, positive GEX $493.7M, guardrails $62.91/$67.22, VIX moderate.
Conflicts: Bearish flow, spot above MP, negative market context, DEX long but flow contradictory.

📉Bearish flow dominates; net premium negative

📌Gamma pinning at $62 max pain; spot 5% above

🛡️Dealer positioning supports $62-67 range; $55 flip far

⚠️VIX at 18.4 not extreme but rising

Regime Classification

Vol Regime

Normal

Vol Normal; IV near 22% typical, VIX 18.43 moderate.

Gamma Regime

Pinning

Gamma Pinning; large positive GEX $493.7M, key pin at $62.

Flow Regime

Bearish

Flow Bearish; net premium negative with put buying.

Spot vs Max Pain

Above

Spot Above; above max pain $62, bias to reversion lower.

Thesis duration: Multi-week — Price ranges for 1-2 weeks, no event catalyst; structural gamma support suggests multi-week range.

Price Range Forecast

Next 1 week

$62.91$67.22

Bias lower within $62.91-$67.22; gamma pin at $62.

Next 2 weeks

$62.08$68.05

Range $62.08-$68.05; bearish flow vs gamma support.

Key Levels

Max pain pins: $62 (2026-05-15); $64 (2026-05-22); $66 (2026-05-29)

EM guardrails: 1w $62.91/$67.22

Support: $62.08 · $62.00 · $61.00

Resistance: $67.50 · $68.05 · $70.00

Gamma flip: ~$55.00 — Approx — based on put OI concentration of 172,185 (15.5% below spot)

Structural: Max pain: $62 (May 15), $64 (May 22), $66 (May 29); 1w guardrails $62.91/$67.22; gamma flip ~$55.

Dealer Positioning (GEX/DEX)

GEX: $+493.7M

DEX: +190.4M shares

Gamma flip: ~$55 (Approx — based on put OI concentration of 172,185 (15.5% below spot))

NTM gamma: GEX +$493.7M (positive), DEX +190.4M shares (long), gamma flip ~$55 (put OI).

IV Analysis

IV vs VIX: Ticker IV at 22% vs VIX 18.4 (1.2x premium), rich relative to sector EM avg 20%. Suggests elevated uncertainty.

Term structure: Term structure in contango; Oct vol ~24% vs Sep 22%, no event kinks. Front-end cheap relative to back.

Skew: Skew elevated on puts (25-delta put IV ~28% vs call 20%). Opportunity: sell $62 puts for 3.5% premium vs 2% historic.

Flow Analysis

Net premium: Bearish net premium of -$17.3M with put/call volume ratio 1.47 and OI ratio 1.50, indicating bearish flow.

Directional prints: 31.9 put 63.5 OTM 2026-07-17 — Vol 10,258 vs OI 108 (ratio 95): aggressive put buying, likely opening. Interpreted as bearish. 36.3 put 61 OTM 2026-06-05 — Vol 5,006 vs OI 109 (ratio 46): strong put buying, bearish sentiment.

Unusual: 31.9 put 63.5 OTM 2026-07-17 — Vol 10,258 vs OI 108 (ratio 95): extremely high relative volume, unusual bearish activity. 36.3 put 61 OTM 2026-06-05 — Vol 5,006 vs OI 109 (ratio 46): highly unusual put volume, bearish.

Risks & Catalysts

!Break below $62 triggers gamma flip and selling to $55.

!Bearish flow persists; net premium negative could push to support $61.50.

!VIX spike above 20 increases IV, hurting short vol positions.

!Positive catalyst (e.g., EM rally) reverses bearish flow; resistance $68.

Strategy Viability

Strategy	Edge	Best Setup	Primary Risk
Iron condor	Conditional	Sell 2026-06-26 $61.00/$60.00 put wing and $72.00/$77.00 call wing Why now: Bearish flow and support at $62 suggest limited downside; iron condor collects theta while hedging tails.	Break below $62 invalidates put side; VIX spike increases IV. Liquidity constraints: short_put: Wide spread (61%).; long_put: Open interest below 25.; short_call: Wide spread (196%).; long_call: Open interest below 25.
Bear put spread	Moderate-Weak	Buy 2026-06-12 $65.00/$61.50 put spread Why now: Defined-risk debit spread captures downside with OTM short put at support.	Break below $62 could widen losses; IV crush if spot stabilizes. Liquidity constraints: long_put: Open interest below 25.; short_put: Wide spread (66%).
Call credit spread	Weak	Sell 2026-05-29 $67.00/$70.00 call spread Why now: Premium sale with defined risk; benefits from time decay if spot stays below short strike.	Upside breakout above $68 could cause losses; gamma risk near expiration. Liquidity constraints: short_call: Wide spread (64%).; long_call: Wide spread (133%).
Long put	Conditional	Buy 2026-06-12 $60.50 put Why now: Convexity for tail risk; benefits from continued selling and IV expansion.	Time decay if rally occurs; needs move to be profitable. Liquidity constraints: long_put: Open interest below 25.

Top Plays

Bear Put Spread

Buy 2026-06-12 $65.00/$61.50 put spread

Debit spread profiting from a decline to support at $61.50, with limited loss if wrong.

Why this play: Directly captures defined-risk downside aligned with bearish bias and flow.

Debit: $0.98-$1.20

Max loss: $1.20

BE: $63.80

Mgmt: Close at 50% gain or if spot breaches invalidation level $67.5. Liquidity warning: Liquidity constraints: long_put: Open interest below 25.; short_put: Wide spread (66%).

Traders seeking defined-risk bearish exposure within a multi-week horizon.

Call Credit Spread

Sell 2026-05-29 $67.00/$70.00 call spread

Selling OTM call spread to collect premium, profiting if stays below $67.

Why this play: Benefits from time decay and bearish flow with defined risk; shorter expiry suits neutral-to-bearish outlook.

Credit: $0.34-$0.41

Max loss: $2.59

BE: $67.41

Mgmt: Hold to expiry, close at 75% max gain or if spot nears short strike. Liquidity warning: Liquidity constraints: short_call: Wide spread (64%).; long_call: Wide spread (133%).

Income-focused traders with neutral-to-bearish view.

Long Put

Buy 2026-06-12 $60.50 put

Outright put purchase for leveraged downside and volatility expansion.

Why this play: Provides convex tail risk and high reward if selling accelerates, leveraging bearish flow.

Debit: $0.52-$0.64

Max loss: $0.64

BE: $59.86

Mgmt: Set stop loss at 100% premium; consider rolling if spot stays above invalidation. Liquidity warning: Liquidity constraints: long_put: Open interest below 25.

Aggressive traders expecting a significant drop or vol spike.

Watchlist Triggers

Entry Triggers

IFIF EEM breaks below $62.00 support → THEN enter Bear Put Spread (buy $65/$61.50 put spread, target debit $1.00-$1.20)

IFIF EEM stays in $62-$67 range → THEN sell Call Credit Spread ($67/$70 May 29) for $0.34-$0.41 credit

Exit Triggers

EXITIF EEM rallies above $67.5 invalidation level → THEN close all bearish positions

Tactical Summary

Bearish flow regime, gamma pinning near $62, bias to drift lower. Support $62, $61.50; resistance $67.5. Prefer bear put spread for defined risk downside, or call credit spread for income if range-bound. Invalid above $67.5.

How to Use These Reports

This directional reflects the market close on May 15, 2026.

What the reports do

Each report translates the same market-close options snapshot into a specific lens such as directional bias, premium-selling posture, flow quality, or earnings setup.

How traders use them

Reports are most useful for narrowing the playbook, surfacing entry and risk context, and deciding which raw data page to inspect next.

What to remember

These are interpretation layers, not execution guarantees. Validate the setup against chain liquidity, expected move, and exposure before sizing risk.

If the report conviction and the raw data disagree, slow down and resolve the mismatch before sizing risk.