Just How Quiet Has Wall Street Been In August?

Monday's trading session was the second-lowest daily volume of the year, according to a report by CNBC. In fact, volatility has been "virtually non-existent" throughout August - which is typical for the "dog days" of summer.

CNBC noted that 5.34 billion shares exchanged hands on Monday, slightly edging out March 28's session in which 5.22 billion shares were traded. On a 50-day moving average, 6.9 billion shares are traded across Wall Street.

Meanwhile, the Volatility Index, also known as the "fear index" is sitting near two-year lows. The lack of fear among investors after months of concerns from China, the domestic economy, and a doom and gloom scenario which has yet to play out following the Brexit vote is apparent.

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All three of the major indices hit all-time highs last week, and the S&P 500 index has not seen a move of more than 1 percent in either direction for more than 30 days.

Calm Before The Storm?

CNN Money stated earlier in the month that Wall Street has gone "too quiet," which at the very least could be a source of concern given the "wild bouts of turbulence" seen earlier in the year.

CNN Money suggested that August's quiet trading activity could very well be the "calm before the storm" as ongoing concerns over the global economy (especially China), the oil market, the U.S. election and corporate America's yearlong profit recession hasn't really gone away.

"It just seems too good to be true," Sam Stovall, a US equity strategist at S&P Global Market Intelligence told CNN Money. "August and September are notorious for market declines."

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