What is the options flow saying about USO?
United States Oil Fund · USO · data through 2026-09-22 · free to read
On 2026-09-22, United States Oil Fund (USO) traded $57.6M of call premium against $98.9M of put premium, 37% of it on the call side. The tape leans puts. Volume and open interest below, updated after each close.
The session's options tape
How much open interest is standing
Across 90 sessions to 2026-09-22, USO carries 109k of call open interest against 156k of puts, a put/call ratio of 1.43. Open interest is what is still on the book, as opposed to what changed hands today.
Where the premium has gone over three months
From 2026-06-23 to 2026-09-22, cumulative call premium reached $4.0B against $2.4B on puts, a net of +$1.7B. One day's flow is noise; the cumulative line is where a lean shows up.
Common questions about USO
What does the options flow on USO actually mean?
It is the money that changed hands in USO options on 2026-09-22: $57.6M paid for calls, $98.9M for puts. Premium is the better read than contract count, because a thousand cheap far-dated calls and one large near-dated block are not the same conviction, and only premium tells them apart.
Is heavy call buying in USO bullish?
Not by itself. 37% of USO's premium sat on the call side, and a good share of any day's call volume is someone hedging a short, closing a position, or a market maker managing inventory. Flow says where money went, never why. It is one input among several, which is how it is weighted on the desk.
What is the difference between volume and open interest on USO?
Volume is what traded today: 132947 calls and 219071 puts. Open interest is what is still on the book afterwards, currently 109k of calls against 156k of puts. Volume can spike and vanish the same day; open interest rising means positions were opened rather than closed.
How often does this page update?
After each US close. Options data settles overnight, so the figures shown for 2026-09-22 are the complete session rather than a partial intraday snapshot. A real-time feed is a different product for a different holding period.
How much options premium traded in USO on 2026-09-22?
$57.6M in calls and $98.9M in puts, for the full session.
Can this USO flow be a hedge rather than a bet?
Yes, and often. A fund long United States Oil Fund buys puts to protect the position, and a fund short it buys calls to cap the loss. The tape shows the trade, never the reason. That is why a single session, even a 37% call-heavy one, is a hint and three sessions in the same direction are a lean.
Does a big options day move USO the next day?
Not reliably. Premium is a measure of attention and positioning, and attention runs both ways. What tends to matter more is where the flow sits against the chart: calls bought above a level the stock has already failed at twice say something; calls bought at a round number say less.
Where does the USO options data come from?
From the options exchanges through OPRA, the consolidated feed every US options trade is printed on. The full session is available the next morning, which is why this page shows 2026-09-22 rather than a live number.
More on USO
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