--- title: "Goldman Sachs Trading Head: Why I Choose Not to Engage in FOMO Buying Amidst the Index Surge?" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/282052944.md" description: "Goldman Sachs Delta-One Head Rich Privorotsky believes that if oil prices remain structurally higher than pre-war levels, this rally is more of a technical rebound driven by short covering rather than a trend worth FOMO buying. The fragility of the ceasefire agreement and Iran's ambiguous stance on controlling passage through the strait both constitute potential risks. The market's ultimate arbiter is only one thing: the actual tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, and this data requires time to verify" datetime: "2026-04-08T13:51:18.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/282052944.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/282052944.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/282052944.md) --- # Goldman Sachs Trading Head: Why I Choose Not to Engage in FOMO Buying Amidst the Index Surge? The Strait of Hormuz ceasefire agreement has spurred a significant market rebound, but the Goldman Sachs Head of Delta-One business has straightforwardly stated "no FOMO buying" and has taken the opportunity to reduce positions. The news of the two-week ceasefire has landed, causing the Nasdaq and small-caps to jump sharply, with gains exceeding the previous benchmark expectations of Rich Privorotsky, Goldman Sachs' Head of Delta-One business. Privorotsky believes that **this rally is more of a technical rebound driven by short covering rather than a substantive improvement in fundamentals.** The S&P 500 has recovered about two-thirds of its previous decline, and the gains in European stocks appear even more excessive—he estimates a "reasonable" gain should have been between 2% and 3%, rather than the 5% actually recorded. ![Image](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://wpimg-wscn.awtmt.com/32ba0035-ee14-4c63-82ff-e9cd153b00d0.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg) Meanwhile, **the fragility of the ceasefire agreement itself and Iran's ambiguous stance on controlling passage through the strait both constitute potential risks.** ## **Ceasefire Agreement: Optimism and Pessimism Coexist** Privorotsky divides the market significance of this ceasefire news into two parts. **The optimistic interpretation is:** This marks the beginning of the end of the conflict, as both sides have found political narratives for a "victory" and have officially sat down at the negotiating table within the two-week window. **The pessimistic interpretation is:** The substantive positions of both sides remain far apart. Iran's conditions include insisting on the right to enrich uranium and establishing some form of "toll" collection and control mechanism in the Strait of Hormuz, possibly involving joint participation with Oman—which would be extremely difficult for the United States to accept. For the market, the subtle differences in the above details are not important. There is only one true key variable: **whether oil tankers can pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and at what speed and scale.** ## **Iran's "Toll Booth": Supply Controlled, Oil Prices Unlikely to Return to the $80 Range** Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on social media: "Within two weeks, through coordination by the Iranian armed forces and taking into account technical limitations, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will become possible." Privorotsky's interpretation of this statement is quite direct: tankers must pass through Iran's "toll booth" for approval, and "technical limitations" mean that throughput will be actively managed—supply will be sufficient to avoid an escalation of the situation, but not enough to cause Iran to lose its bargaining chips in negotiations. This judgment supports his basic view on oil price trends: **international crude oil will remain in the $90 range, rather than falling back into the $80 range.** However, he also noted that there will be a large number of underwater hedging positions and Commodity Trading Advisor (CTA) long positions that need to be closed out at that time, creating periodic selling pressure. ![Image](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://wpimg-wscn.awtmt.com/30ec0cb1-eacb-466d-9223-5dd3bb36f8a7.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg) ## **Technical Analysis: Short Covering Drives Rally, Positive Gamma Slows Upside** In the stock market, the structure of this rally confirms Privorotsky's previous assessment of an asymmetrical landscape: overall positioning is high while net positions are low, and investors generally hold too many index hedges, leading to a large volume of futures short orders that need to be covered. Mechanical buying from CTA strategies has now been triggered and is expected to continue for some time. Volatility compression further serves as a tailwind. ![Image](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://wpimg-wscn.awtmt.com/44367a6d-0f1f-4b74-9563-a68eaee108bd.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg) According to SpotGamma data, **a positive Gamma concentration zone of approximately $10 billion exists near the 6800 level of the S&P 500 (at the 85th percentile historically)**. Positive Gamma will create resistance to further upside for the index; as fast money takes profits, the market will gradually shift toward range-bound consolidation, and index volatility will further decline. ![Image](https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://wpimg-wscn.awtmt.com/ab9bbe06-ad1b-411c-b8dc-e467695dd026.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg) ## **Risks: Fragile Ceasefire, Expensive European Stocks, New Highs Unlikely** Privorotsky explicitly stated that FOMO buying at current levels is not a good trade. First, the ceasefire is inherently fragile. He pointed out that airstrikes have already occurred in the Gulf region overnight; although this may be a "lagging effect," the disagreements surrounding proxy conflicts (such as friction between Lebanon and Israel) leave ample room for the agreement to collapse. Second, the market's ultimate arbiter is only one thing: the actual tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, and this data requires time to verify. Third, the gains in European stocks are clearly excessive and feel "overextended." Regarding the future direction of the market, Privorotsky believes it is necessary to observe the resonance of three variables: interest rates, credit spreads, and oil prices. Among these, interest rates carry the most weight, depending not only on where oil prices are headed but more importantly on the level at which oil prices eventually stabilize. Regarding credit spreads, the accelerated fading of tail risk hedges will provide a positive signal, though its recent reference value is limited. Volatility compression strings all of this together to collectively determine reasonable spot pricing. His final conclusion is: **If oil prices are structurally higher than pre-war levels, this rally is more of a mechanical technical repair rather than a trend worth FOMO buying. His operational choice is to sell some long positions during this surge rather than following through with more buying.** ### Related Stocks - [BP.UK](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/BP.UK.md) - [BNO.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/BNO.US.md) - [GS.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GS.US.md) - [IXC.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/IXC.US.md) - [CRAK.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/CRAK.US.md) - [GS-C.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GS-C.US.md) - [XES.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/XES.US.md) - [XOP.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/XOP.US.md) - [OXY.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/OXY.US.md) - [IEO.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/IEO.US.md) - [VDE.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/VDE.US.md) - [IEZ.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/IEZ.US.md) - [GS-D.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GS-D.US.md) - [XLE.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/XLE.US.md) - [GS-A.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GS-A.US.md) - [USO.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/USO.US.md) - [UCO.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/UCO.US.md) - [OIH.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/OIH.US.md) ## Related News & Research - [ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil Shares Fall As Oil Tumbles On Iran Ceasefire Hopes](https://longbridge.com/en/news/282089352.md) - [BREAKINGVIEWS-Iran war will leave lasting scars on energy market](https://longbridge.com/en/news/282008303.md) - [ROI-Iran ceasefire provides hope, but physical oil markets to remain stressed: Russell](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281956537.md) - [Traders place large $950 million bet on oil price falling hours ahead of ceasefire](https://longbridge.com/en/news/282061442.md) - [ROI-It's time to end the world's delusions over the Iran energy crisis: Russell](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281831914.md)