VIX falls slightly as stocks finish flat
The broad U.S. equity indexes closed mixed but basically unchanged at the end of the day.
The S&P 500 finished the day at 1387.81, up less than 1 point on the session after dropping at the open and climbing into the close. Resistance remains at 1400 and support at 1348.
The Nasdaq 100 slipped just over 1 point to close at 2594.66. It followed a similar pattern, climbing towards its highs at the close. Resistance and support remain at 2623 and 2494 respectively.
The Russell 2000 gained less than 1 point, closing at 793.81, essentially matching the morning high. Support and resistance are at 764 and 805 respectively.
All three stock indexes remain below their 20-day moving averages.
The CBOE Volatility Index was down 0.16 points, or 1.05 percent, to close at its session low of 15.08. The VIX is now in line with the 20-day historical volatility of the SPX but remains below its 10-day reading of 18.85 percent.
The November VIX futures finished trading yesterday and settle this morning. They were down 0.15 points to close at 15.10. The front-month December futures lost 0.25 points to close at 16.35. The January futures were down 0.65 points to 18 even.
More than 606,000 VIX options changed hands, led by 351,000 puts. The SPX options were just behind with 563,000 and a put/call call ratio of 2 to 1. The VVIX Index, which measures the implied volatility of the VIX options, was down 2.8 percent to 85.93, approaching the lows.
More From optionMONSTER