The Implied Volatility of these Calls was 33.9 and the Delta was 70.0 when this transaction was executed. A moderately in-the-money strike price was selected given my current Slightly Bearish Overall Market Meter and its accompanying guideline that Covered Call positions be established at between 2% and 5% in-the-money and with short-term (i.e. one month or less) option expiration dates. This position qualifies in both regards since the $30.00 strike price is 3.7% in-the-money and the 15 days to the options expiration date is within the preferred one-month maximum.
I concur with many economists and Wall Street analysts who expect China's stock market to outperform so-called "developed" markets this year. China's central economic policy is loosening while major developed markets like the U.S., Europe, and Japan are tightening. Furthermore, the apparent (though slow) re-opening from China's Covid lockdown policy will further benefit their economy. Also importantly, FXI's market valuation metrics are very attractive with a current P/E of 8.6 and a P/Book of 1.1 when compared to an S&P 500 P/E of 19.1 and P/Book of 3.9. It seems very likely that Emerging Markets (including China specifically) have a good chance of outperforming U.S. market benchmarks this year. From a technical perspective, the 2-day Relative Strength Index, RSI(2) was substantially oversold at 13.4 when this position was established.
Fortunately, the Implied Volatility of FXI options are significantly higher than those of a common U.S. market benchmark like the S&P 500 (i.e. SPY). For example, the 2/17/2023 $30.00 Calls I sold today had an Implied Volatility of 33.9 while at the same time the Implied Volatility of comparable SPY Calls was only 21.2 -- so FXI provides a significantly higher potential annualized-return-on-investment than that of SPY. In addition, FXI options are very liquid (even in weekly options) so it is likely I will continue to often establish approximately bi-weekly Covered Calls in FXI in upcoming weeks this year. Finally, the fact that investing in China-based companies improves the diversification of the Covered Calls Advisor Portfolio appeals to me. In short, it serves as a counterbalance to my normal home country bias.
As detailed below, a potential return-on-investment result is +1.4% absolute return (equivalent to +34.0% annualized
return for the next 15 days) if the iShares China Large-Cap ETF share price is in-the-money (i.e. above the $30.00 strike price) and therefore assigned on the February 17th, 2023 options expiration date.
iShares China Large-Cap ETF (FXI) -- New Covered Calls Position 
The Buy/Write transaction was as follows:
2/3/2023 Bought 1,000 shares of iShares China Large-Cap ETF @ $31.10 per share
2/3/2023 Sold 10 FXI Feb 17th, 2023 $30.00 Call options @ $1.52 per share
A possible overall performance result (including commissions) for this iShares China Large-Cap ETF Covered Calls position is as follows:
FXI Covered Calls Net Investment: $29,586.70
= ($31.10 - $1.52) * 1,000 shares + $6.70 commission
Net Profit:
(a) Options Income: +$1,513.30
= ($1.52 * 1,000 shares) - $6.70 commission
(b) Dividend Income: +$0.00
(c) Capital Appreciation (If 1,000 iShares China Large-Cap ETF shares assigned at $30.00 strike price at expiration): -$1,100.00
+($30.00 - $31.10) * 1,000 shares
Total Net Profit Potential (If 1,000 iShares China Large-Cap ETF shares assigned at $30.00 strike price at expiration): +$413.30
= (+$1,513.30 options income +$0.00 dividend income -$1,100.00 capital appreciation)
Absolute Return-on-Investment Potential: +1.4%
= +$413.30/$29,586.70
Annualized Return-on-Investment Potential: +34.0%
= (+$413.30/$29,586.70) * (365/15 days)
