Look To Add Short Exposure Going Into Next Week

If you are a short term trader, it is time to consider locking in some gains on the long side of your portfolio and increasing your short exposure going into next week. This weekend, Wall Street will be watching the healthcare vote with keen interest. It would seem that if the bill passes, as is expected, it could cause investor uncertainty about the political environment in Washington D.C.

CNBC's Jim Cramer has been saying that he believes if the healthcare bill passes it will be met with a sell off in stocks. That being said, the market had another strong week, and on the surface, does not seem to be overly worried. It would appear, however, that conditions are setting up in favor of trading from the short side in the near term, or at least reducing long exposure.

If you are interested in making money on the short side of this market, consider using options to gain that exposure. Two strategies that will benefit from a decline in the equity markets next week are buying calls on the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, or VIX, or purchasing put options on the iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF (NYSE: IWM).