Stocks may have taken a big tumble Thursday and be headed back on Friday. Nevertheless, the market’s fear gauge has been settling down over the past few days.
The Cboe Volatility Index, also known as the VIX, was down slightly at 24.03 early Friday. It’s been retreating since climbing above 27 on Tuesday, the highest level so far this year. Usually any reading above 20 is considered more volatile than normal.
The VIX is a measure of how big price swings are, either up or down. It tends to go up more when stocks are falling. However, probably because stocks tend to fall more quickly than they rise.