The options market is betting that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged for the entire year.

According to ChainCatcher, citing Jinse Finance, an increasing number of options traders are ruling out expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut in 2026, instead betting that rates will remain unchanged throughout the year. This trend can be traced back at least to last Friday, when U.S. employment data showed an unexpected drop in the unemployment rate. Based on market pricing, this has almost eliminated the possibility of a Fed rate cut this month. David Robin, interest rate strategist at TJM Institutional Services, pointed out that the probability of the Fed keeping rates unchanged at least until March has increased. New options positions are mainly concentrated in the March and June contracts, to hedge against the scenario where the Fed continues to delay its next rate cut action.