VIX Posts Second-Biggest Percent Drop Ever on Fed Rate Pledge
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The VIX had the second-largest percent drop ever, reversing yesterday’s biggest surge in four years, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke promised to keep interest rates at record lows to revive economic growth.
The VIX, as the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index is known, slumped 27 percent to 35.06 at 4:15 p.m. in New York, paring yesterday’s 50 percent surge to 48, the highest level since March 2009. The only larger drop in its 21-year history was a 30 percent slide on May 10, 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The VIX measures the cost of options on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, which surged 4.7 percent.