VIX, futures decline as S&P 500 climbs

The CBOE Volatility Index closed near its session lows yesterday as the S&P 500 finished just off its high.

The VIX was down 0.27 points, or 1.37 percent, to finish the day at 19.45. The volatility index hit a low of 19.38 in the morning but had been in positive territory for most of the afternoon and even right before the bell.

The S&P 500 was at the day's high above 1334 just before the bell and ended the day at 1331.85, up just under 12 points. The SPX and the VIX typically move inversely.

The July and August VIX futures were both down 0.10 points, to 21.65 and 23.60 respectively. The further-dated futures were all down more.

In very light overall volume of under 11 million options, the VIX saw 172,000 contracts trade with just shy of 100,000 calls. The iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) saw 114,000 change hands, including 72,000 calls.

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