Volatility In Markets Eases Further As US Stocks Extend Gains

US stocks extended gains, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq settling sharply higher on Friday.

On Thursday, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq recorded their biggest daily percentage surge in over 2-1/2 years as annual inflation in the US dropped below the 8% mark for the first time in eight months.

Majority of the investors are now expecting a 50-basis point rate increase during the December’s meeting.

The Nasdaq 100 jumped 1.82% to close at 11,817.01 on Friday, amid gains in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN). The S&P 500 surged 0.92%, while the Dow Jones climbed over 32 points to settle at 33,747.86 in the previous session.

For the week, the S&P 500 gained 5.9%, while the Nasdaq surged 8.1%.

Major sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a mixed note, with energy and communication services stocks recording the biggest surge on Friday. However, health care stocks were among the worst performers, falling around 1.3% in the previous session.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) dropped 4.3% to 22.52 points.

What is CBOE Volatility Index?

The CBOE Volatility Index, popularly known as VIX, is a measure of the equity market's expectation of volatility based on S&P 500 index call and put options.