Junk bond ETF's September outflow signals investor anxiety: WSJ

• investors pulled more than $2B from the iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond Exchange-Traded Fund (HYG -0.3%) last month, the most in a single month since May 2016, the Wall Street Journal reports.
• Furthermore, some investors are buying protection in the form of option contracts that would help to offset losses if junk debt sells off.
• The resilience of high-yield credit at a time when the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates is leading to growing apprehension among some, the WSJ says.
• The spread between Treasury yields and the average speculative-grade bond yield has declined to the narrowest level in a decade, indicating that investors are willing to take less compensation on riskier companies on the basis that economy is strong enough for these companies to make their debt payments.
• Previously: Junk bonds' risk premium shrinks to smallest since 2007 (Oct. 2)
• ETFs: HYG, JNK, DHY, HIX, EAD, PHT, HYT, HYLD, JQC, ACP, ANGL, CIK, MCI, DSU, SJB, KIO, NHS, CIF, ARDC, IVH, GGM, AIF, MPV, FHY, PHF, JSD, VLT, HYHG, HYLS, DHG, PCF, MHY, UJB, HYGH, FALN, CJNK, THHY, HYIH, HYLB, HYXE, WFHY, HYDB, BSJP, HYUP, USHY