UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH), Alcoa Inc (AA) – The Federal Reserve and Volatility: More Bark Than Bite

If you thought last month was volatile, you were on to something. News that the Federal Reserve could soon reduce its support for the economy sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average 2 Minute (INDEXDJX:.DJI) barreling up or spiraling down by triple-digit margins in 16 of the month’s 20 trading sessions. But at the end of the day, the reaction to the Fed’s announcement turned out to be far more bark than bite.

Let me be clear: June was anything but docile for investors. The average daily movement of the Dow Jones Industrial Average 2 Minute (INDEXDJX:.DJI) was 136 points. This was the highest average since the year 2000, and it handily beat out the runners-up (2012 and 2008), which came in at an average of 115. In addition, as I alluded to, a full 80% of the trading days closed either higher or lower by a triple-digit margin.

Source: Yahoo! Finance

If one were to stop here, it’d be tempting to conclude that last month was the most volatile June on record, or at least since the turn of the century. But, as you may have guessed, there’s more to the story.

Take a look at the following table. By these measurements, June was actually a comparatively pedestrian month. Average daily volume was the second lowest in the past 14 years. And it was in the middle of the pack in terms of both the average daily percentage movement and the aggregate change (in absolute points and percentage) between the beginning and the end of the month.

Source: Yahoo! Finance.