No matter which way the S&P 500 Index goes after a tumultuous month, options volatility looks to be headed higher.

The benchmark snapped a three-week run of gains, pushing for a time on Friday the Cboe Volatility Index well above 20, a sign of growing market stress. The pullback in stocks reversed an acceleration to a record high that saw an increase in spot up, vol up days — when share prices and volatility move in tandem, as opposed to the typical inverse relationship between the two.

A number of factors supported volatility flare-ups in mid-October and last week. Outsized moves seen in single stocks after earnings point to growing fragility in the market. And the lack of US government economic figures leaves macro analysts hunting around for alternate data sources at a time when the T

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