NBB vs VXX: Correlation
How closely do Nuveen Taxable Municipal Income Fund (NBB) and iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of -0.22, which is negative.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are NBB and VXX?
Across a 3-year window, the weekly returns of NBB and VXX correlate at -0.22, negative, meaning they tend to move in opposite directions. The past 12 months show a weaker link (-0.48) than the 3-year average (-0.22). Stretching to 5 years gives -0.25, with an annualized covariance of -163.4 %².
Among the 19 assets we track against NBB, VXX sits near the bottom by co-movement, at rank #17. Their recent paths diverged sharply: over the last 12 months NBB outperformed by 55.0 percentage points (+5.3% for NBB against -49.7% for VXX). Note the risk asymmetry: VXX runs 5.1 times the annualized volatility of the other leg, so equal-weighting the two is not an equal-risk position.
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
NBB vs VXX: side by side
| NBB (Nuveen Taxable Municipal Income Fund) | VXX (iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +5.3% | -49.7% |
| 5-year return | -5.4% | -95.6% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 12.0% | 60.9% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 0.22 | -3.31 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -11.4% | -83.3% |
| Market cap | – | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 16.4 | – |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Sector / category | US Listed | US Listed |
Year-by-year returns
| Year | NBB | VXX |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -24.6% | -23.8% |
| 2023 | +7.6% | -72.5% |
| 2024 | +1.4% | -26.2% |
| 2025 | +13.6% | -42.2% |
| 2026 | +2.4% | -31.6% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are NBB and VXX good diversifiers for each other?
By historical standards, yes. A correlation of -0.22 means the two rarely move for the same reasons.
FAQ
What is the correlation between NBB and VXX?
The NBB/VXX correlation stands at -0.22 on a 3-year window (1 year: -0.48, 5 years: -0.25), computed from weekly returns as of 2026-08-27.
Is VXX a good diversifier for NBB?
By historical standards, yes. A correlation of -0.22 means the two rarely move for the same reasons.
What does a correlation of -0.22 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, -0.22 describes how much the two returns move together: +1 is lockstep, 0 is independence, negative values mean opposite directions. It says nothing about which performed better.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/nbb-vs-vxx.json
Drop this badge in a README or notebook; it updates with the data:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/nbb-vs-vxx/)
Free with attribution; caching and terms are described in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: NBB correlations · VXX correlations
