Quote from acen1975:
there's no cost of carry between syntetics my friend.
some of the guys here are right,the the dividend would make a difference in that case,but that's why i am giving an example with a nondividend underline.
the other thing is,that the position is not expiring 2011,but dec09.
if you short the call cldr,and buy the put cldr,and if we assume,that these positions are the same and expire equally,this is a pure arbitrage-if you use a full broker(not a discount one),and can prove him that they are "the same",he would allow you to open thousands positions,without puting any of your money,and by expiration at dec,you would be a very rich guy out of nothing.......to hook this arbitrage,the whole position is a credit-you even get money upfront from selling the more expensive,and buying the cheaper......
do you believe such an arbitrage is possible?
cause that how it ends up-if i have to accept your theory,so it means,that they would expire the same amount.....
if so,lets get all very rich and fast ,as shorting expensive and buy cheaper .........the whole cost of trade, in that case, is cheaper that 10-20% arbitrage.......
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Are you absolutely sure there is no cost of carry in synthetics!?
Cost of carry is composed of interest less dividends.
However, let's assume this is an arb. To capture it you would buy the put calendar and sell the call calendar.
For argument's sake, let's say that GOOG expires right at 300 in Dec09 and that neither Dec09 option is assigned/exercised (i.e. both expire worthless). This assumption is just to illustrate a point, the principle is the same for any expiration price.
Your resulting position is long Jan11 300 put and short Jan11 300 call. In order to realize the arb you must hold the two options to expiration. So to hedge yourself you would buy the stock, since you are short synthetic. In order to buy the stock you would either use margin and pay interest on it or forgo the interest you could have earned on the cash had you not purchased the stock.
So here's your cost of carry.
Still think there is an arb?
EDIT: I forgot to add that the interest on the long stock would cover the difference between the two calendars.
