Investors got a better-than-expected July nonfarm payrolls report on Friday, but it wasn’t enough to lift the debt clouds and traders were nervous to hold positions into the weekend.
Stock exchange traded funds were lower in midday trading in volatile action after a better-than-expected jobs report.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: SPY) was down 1.5% after government said U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by 117,000 in July while the unemployment rate ticked slightly lower.
The blue-chip ETF tumbled nearly 5% on Thursday as the risk aversion trade rippled through global markets on worries about the economic recovery and Europe’s debt morass.
The iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (NYSEArca: VXX) was up 8% after surging 20% in Thursday’s stock sell-off. The CBOE Volatility Index, Wall Street’s fear gauge, rose to its highest levels of the year on Thursday.