see also the "Oil Impact Charts"

Peak in volatility can change investors' future expectations, as the memory of it stays with investors for a while and works its way into the markets. Currently we are seeing high volatility in the oil market, but most financial markets are experiencing very low volatility, in some ways inexplicably low. Trying to search for an explanation, the best we have been able to do is an idea offered by Byron Wien — that when people don't know what to do, they often feel the safest thing is to do nothing.

Venting imbalances. Financial markets have long served the painful but useful purpose of venting imbalances in the real economy; while the tensions of America's twin deficits in 1987 were vented in equity markets, other asset markets could give way this time — namely, the dollar, the bond market, credit markets, or even property.
(see below the Japanese Negative Impacts from Deflation)