QQQ $687.99 +0.65%
VIX 15.99
as of 31 July 2026 close
MPI — (capsule; live values in Pulse Lab)
Publication note: Published 2 August 2026 for the 31 July 2026 session. The publishing pipeline was offline 29–31 July; this is the last of three backfilled capsule editions — verified end-of-day data, condensed format, honestly labeled. Regular editions and the OI-confirmation loop resume Monday 3 August.
- AMZN surged on cloud strength; AAPL fell despite record results — dispersion ruled every night of earnings week.
- SPY closed the month at $747.03 (+0.72%), back above the gamma-flip zone; QQQ +0.65% to $687.99.
- VIX 15.99 — the lowest close of July, a full five points off Wednesday’s high.
What happened
The week’s fourth mega-cap night resolved like the previous three: in opposite directions. AMZN rose double-digits on cloud acceleration while AAPL declined despite record headline results — and the index shrugged off the loser, again. SPY added 0.72% to close the month at $747.03 off a $748.90 high, its third straight green session and a close back above the dealer-flip zone the tape fought over all month. QQQ added 0.65% to $687.99. From Wednesday’s Fed low to Friday’s close, SPY recovered 2.4% in two sessions.
Volatility ended the month at its floor: VIX closed 15.99, down from Wednesday’s 20.88 print — a five-point round trip in three sessions — and QQQ’s 30-day IV rank fell to 54 from Wednesday’s 86 as the last of the event premium drained. SPY’s put/call by volume still ran 1.28 with put premium modestly ahead of calls (~$1.36B vs $1.20B): even on a green month-end tape, the paper stayed insurance-tilted into a week that opens with an ISM print and closes with the July jobs report.
The set-up
July closed with the composite at 65 and the regime reading Bull · early — the market’s largest earnings week produced violent single-name dispersion and almost no net index damage, a hawkish-hold Fed was absorbed in a single session, and vol finished at monthly lows. What the tape carries into August: confirmed dated positioning around next week’s reports, a jobs print Friday that tests the hike-path question the dissents raised, and a vol market once again priced for calm. Regular editions resume Monday; the ledger has scored everything above either way.
Method note
Flow data sourced from Unusual Whales; index and volatility prints are exchange closes for 31 July 2026, verified at source during backfill. MPI/regime strip values are omitted in this capsule rather than reconstructed — the canonical composite history is preserved in Pulse Lab. Daily synthesis is AI-assisted.
This is research, not advice. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security.
AZTMM HLDGS LLC is not a registered broker-dealer, investment adviser, or FINRA member. All content is retrospective research published for general circulation — not personalized advice, not trade signals. Options involve substantial risk, including losses that may exceed the initial investment. Full disclaimer.
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