Stock exchange-traded funds (ETFs) declined drastically last month before recovering slightly as Europe’s debt crisis and Standard & Poor’s cutting U.S. credit rating sapped investor sentiment, ETF Trends reports. However, ETFs tracking market volatility surged at the expense of equities, while safe-haven traders turned to gold, which helped the precious metal reach all-time record highs.

The broader equities markets witnessed a mass exit of investors in the risk-off environment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended August down 3.96 percent the S&P 500 lost 5.43 percent, while the Nasdaq dropped 6.42 percent. VIX-related funds were some of the best-performing unleveraged exchange-traded products for the month.

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