Volatility In Markets Increases, Fed Minutes In Focus

US stocks closed lower on first trading session of the year, as investors awaited minutes from the recent Federal Reserve meeting.

Major US stock indices recorded their steepest annual losses since 2008 during 2022 following Fed’s aggressive rate hikes. The S&P 500 had dropped around 19.4% last year.

Investors will also keep an eye on other economic reports due this week, including the ISM manufacturing report and jobs report for December.

Major sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a mixed note, with communication services stocks recording the biggest surge on Tuesday. However, energy and information technology stocks were among the worst performers during the session.

The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.70% to close at 10,862.64 on Tuesday, amid losses in shares of Tesla Inc TSLA and Apple Inc AAPL.

The S&P 500 declined 0.40%, while the Dow Jones fell 0.03% to 33,136.37 in the previous session.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) rose 5.7% to 22.90 points on Tuesday.

What is CBOE Volatility Index?

The CBOE Volatility Index, popularly known as VIX, is a measure of the equity market's expectation of volatility based on S&P 500 index call and put options.

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