We need to talk about LEVERAGE. US investors now owe $1.48 TRILLION on margin, the 2nd highest ever. They borrowed another $26 BILLION in September, leaving margin debt just 1.5% below June's $1.50 TRILLION record, per FINRA. Meanwhile, their idle cash at brokers is up just 1.7% since October 2021, while their margin debt is up 58%. But the stock market has grown too. Investors owe about $2.30 on margin for every $100 of S&P 500 stock, roughly what they've owed on average since 1997, per First Trust. We've seen margin debt peak within 3 months of a market top before: 1. March 2000: $300B, then the S&P 500 fell 49% 2. July 2007: $416B, then the S&P 500 fell 57% 3. October 2021: $936B, then the S&P 500 fell 25% Each time, the borrowing unwound too, with margin debt falling 35% to 55% from its peak.