Trading News

The CBOE Volatility Index oddly collapsed to its session lows at the end of the day while the equity indexes pushed higher.

The VIX finished the day down 0.88 points, or 5.7 percent, to 14.55. It had been holding 15 right into the bell but fell afterward, as the index continues to trade until 4:15 p.m. ET.

The S&P 500 finished the day at 1461.40, up 10.41 points. This was off the morning high still  the second highest close of the year, just behind the Sept. 14 close of 1465.77.  

Resistance for the SPX is now at the current level and then at 1474. The first level of support is 1448.

The Nasdaq 100 finished at 2828.60, up just shy of 10 points higher on the day. It peaked in the late afternoon but came off that high into the close.

The NDX closed above its 20-day moving average but remains off its September highs. Resistance is at 2851, and support is at 2780.

The Russell 2000 was up 5.87 points to end the day at 844.65, its session high. Resistance for the small-cap index remains at 856 while support is at 832.

The VIX futures followed the volatility index lower, and they too finished at their lows of the day. The October futures were down 0.75 points to close at 15.75, and the November contracts fell 0.40 points to 17.3.
 
The SPX options led the index volumes at about 700,000 contracts, with 426,000 puts. The VIX options traded more than 286,000 options as its calls outpaced puts by 2 to 1.

The iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) saw 211,000 options change hands, with 131,000 calls. The VVIX, the volatility index of the VIX options, was down 4.6 percent to 83.51--just above the all-time low of its short existence.