Tech volatility hits highest since dot-com bust next to S&P 500 | Fortune

Tech volatility has reached levels not seen since the dot-com era, with concerns rising that technology’s outperformance is starting to come with sharper swings. The Cboe NDX Volatility Index, which gauges options contract costs tied to the Nasdaq 100, has climbed steadily this year and is near 27—its highest level since 2002 relative to the broader S&P 500-focused Cboe VIX. On Tuesday, the Nasdaq 100 fell 1.3% amid uncertainty about the payoff from large artificial-intelligence investments, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.2%. Monday’s session marked the index’s sixth straight day with a move of more than 1% in either direction, pushing 30-day realized volatility to 29.7. Space Exploration Technologies Corp. is set to join the Nasdaq-100 on Tuesday, potentially widening the gap in volatility versus the S&P 500. UBS’s Maxwell Grinacoff said the earlier view that Nasdaq gyrations would exceed the S&P remains intact, and traders and banks discussed hedges involving Nasdaq-100 options and ETF-driven leverage effects.