Dow Falls Over 200 Points Ahead Of Fed Decision: Investor Sentiment Declines, But Fear Index Remains In 'Greed' Zone

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed some decline in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Greed” zone on Tuesday.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones index falling more than 200 points during the session.

UnitedHealth Group UNH reported downbeat second-quarter 2025 earnings on Tuesday and reestablished its 2025 guidance. The Procter & Gamble Co. PG reported better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter on Tuesday.

On the economic data front, the number of job openings declined by 275,000 to 7.437 million in June, compared to market expectations of 7.55 million. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Index increased 2.8% year-over-year for May. U.S. wholesale inventories increased 0.2% month-over-month to $907.7 billion in June. The U.S. trade deficit in goods shrank by $10.4 billion to $86 billion in June.

The Federal Reserve will announce its interest-rate decision today, with investors expecting no change in rates.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with industrials, consumer discretionary and health care stocks recording the biggest losses on Tuesday. However, real estate and utilities stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed lower by 205 points to 44,632.99 on Tuesday. The S&P 500 fell 0.30% to 6,370.86, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.38% to 21,098.29 during Tuesday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Meta Platforms Inc.META, Microsoft Corp. MSFT and Kraft Heinz Co. KHC today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 69.1, the index remained in the “Greed” zone on Tuesday, versus a prior reading of 72.2.

The Fear & Greed Index is a measure of the current market sentiment. It is based on the premise that higher fear exerts pressure on stock prices, while higher greed has the opposite effect. The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.

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