Option prices depend on how much the underlying fund is expected to move before expiry. Working backwards from those prices gives implied volatility (IV), quoted as an annualized percentage. An IV of 40% on a fund implies a one-standard-deviation move of roughly 40% over a year — about 11.5% over a month.
InflowScan reports at-the-money IV — the average of the contracts with strikes nearest the fund’s price — for expiries about 30 days out (20–45 days) and about 60 days out (50–75 days). When the longer-dated reading is above the shorter one, the market is pricing more uncertainty further out; when the 30-day reading jumps above the 60-day, near-term nerves are elevated.
Implied volatility is a price, not a prediction: it reflects what traders are willing to pay today, and actual moves can come in well above or below it.