VIX is the ticker symbol and the popular name for the Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index, a popular measure of the stock market's expectation of volatility based on S&P 500 index options. It is calculated and disseminated on a real-time basis by the CBOE, and is often referred to as the fear index or fear gauge.
The VIX Index is a volatility index derived from S&P 500 options, with the price of each option representing the market's expectation of 30-day forward-looking volatility. The resulting VIX index formulation provides a measure of expected market volatility on which expectations of further stock market volatility in the near future might be based.Like conventional indexes, the VIX Index calculation employs rules for selecting component options and a formula to calculate index values. Unlike other market products, VIX cannot be bought or sold directly. Instead, VIX is traded and exchanged via derivative contracts (Futures contract, Option (finance)), or derived Exchange-traded fund (ETFs), and exchange-traded notes (ETNs) which most commonly track VIX futures indexes.In addition to VIX, CBOE uses the same methodology to compute the following related products:
Cboe ShortTerm Volatility Index (VIX9DSM), which reflects 9-day expected volatility of the S&P 500 Index,
Cboe S&P 500® 3-Month Volatility Index (VIX3MSM),
Cboe S&P 500® 6-Month Volatility Index (VIX6MSM)
Cboe S&P 500 1-Year Volatility Index (VIX1YSM).Cboe also calculates the Nasdaq-100® Volatility Index (VXNSM), Cboe DJIA® Volatility Index (VXDSM) and the Cboe Russell 2000® Volatility Index (RVXSM).