Panic Creeps Up as VIX Curves Invert for First Time Since March

The US stock selloff is spreading panic among volatility traders at a scale unseen since the regional bank crisis in March. In perverse Wall Street logic, that’s raising hopes that the equity rout is on its last legs.

As stock losses gathered pace Tuesday on still-surging Treasury yields, derivatives pros priced in more turbulence in the here and now than in the future.

The Cboe Volatility Index, a gauge of implied price swings in the S&P 500 known as the VIX, surged 2.2 points to 19.80, pushing the spot price above that its three-month futures for the first time ...