Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The Russell 2000 (-0.3%) and S&P Midcap 400 (-0.3%) have joined the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 in negative territory as selling interest has fanned out to the broader market. Not surprisingly, there has been a degradation of the advance-decline line that heavily favored advancing stocks shortly after today's open.

A 2-to-1 margin for advancers at the NYSE has shrunk to a 5-to-4 margin now. Similarly, advancers hold a slim 10-to-9 edge over decliners at the Nasdaq after seeing a better than 2-to-1 margin at the open.

The losses overall remain modest in scope, so the pullback can't be remotely described as a "rush for the exits." On the contrary, it has been an orderly retreat.

The latter point notwithstanding, it is worth noting that there has been a sizable jump in the CBOE Volatility Index. On Friday the VIX fell below 13.00 after closing at 20.49 on Election Day. Today, it is up 10.9% to 14.16, reflecting a pickup in interest in using options to hedge portfolios for near-term downside risk.