S&P 500 Settles Lower, Market Volatility Falls Slightly

The S&P 500 closed lower on Friday as investors monitored recent inflation reports.

US producer prices rose 0.7% month-over-month in January, while consumer prices in the US rose 0.5% month-over-month in January, the most in three months.

Goldman Sachs and Bank of America now expect three more rate increases this year, up from their prior forecast of two rate hikes.

Deere & Company DE shares gained 7.5% on Friday after the company reported better-than-expected Q1 results.

Major sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a mixed note, with utilities and consumer staples stocks recording the biggest gains on Friday. However, energy stocks recorded sharp losses, falling around 3.7% during the session.

The Nasdaq 100 dipped 0.68% to close at 12,358.18 on Friday, amid losses in shares of Microsoft Corp MSFT and Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN.

The S&P 500 fell 0.28%, while the Dow Jones added 0.39% to 33,826.69 in the previous session.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) fell 0.7% to 20.02 points on Friday.
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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