The Nations TailDex Index (TDEX) and the Cboe Skew Index (SKEWX), two gauges that measure how much traders are paying for crash protection, have decreased despite the Middle East war raging. The S&P 500 is still down ⁠2% from pre-war levels. While the TailDex index indicates less concern about a steep drop in equity prices, Scott Nations, president of Nations Indexes, said this outlook makes sense given the muted response from the S&PS 500. However, market anxiety levels remain higher than they were in early February.