: VIX, the stock market’s fear gauge, jumps as U.S. equities drop amid SVB worries

The CBOE Volatility Index, known as Wall Street’s fear gauge, has jumped as U.S. stocks sell off amid investor anxiety over Silicon Valley Bank and its parent SVB Financial Group. The index, VIX known by its ticker VIX, was up more than 19% at around 27 Friday afternoon, according to FactSet data, at last check. That compares with its long term average of around 20. The VIX had jumped about 18% to 22.6 on Thursday, the day shares of SVB Financial SIVB were plunging. On Friday, California regulators closed Silicon Valley Bank, with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. appointed as receiver. Stocks in the banking sector were falling Friday amid fears over a crack in the financial system, with shares of the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF KRE down around 6% Friday afternoon, according to FactSet data, at last check. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 SPX was trading down 1.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA fell 0.8% and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite COMP dropped 1.7%.The VIX has spiked more than 45% so far this week, FactSet data show, at last check.

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