Options Trading News

Equity indexes fell for the second straight session yesterday, pushing the CBOE Volatility Index and its futures higher.

The S&P 500 lost 9.53 points, or 0.63 percent, to close at 1502.42. It had traded near 1497 with about two hours left in the session and then rallied, finishing above the 1500 level. Support is still at 1495 and resistance at 1531.

The Nasdaq 100 followed the same pattern, but it lost 1.04 percent, or 28.48 points, to close at 2711.51. It touched support at 2700 but held above that level. The next support level below that is 2600, while resistance is at 2782.

The Russell 2000 gave up 8.10 points, or 0.89 percent, to close at 905.40. It fell to support of 900 held that level. The support below that is 884, while resistance is at 932.

The VIX finished the day up 0.54 points to 15.22, a gain of 3.68 percent. It had climbed as high as 16.21 with 90 minutes left to trade but gave up ground into the close.

The VIX futures were higher, but not for the entire session. The March futures finished with a gain of 0.15 points at 15.55, while the April futures were up 0.10 points to 16.10. At several points during the day, the spot volatility index was above the March futures.

More than 735,000 VIX options traded on the day. Calls made up 403,000 of that volume, less than one would expect given the equity selloff. The VVIX Index, which measures the implied volatility of the VIX options, was up 1.5 percent to 80.83, its first close above 80 in 2013.