Fear & Greed Index Moves To 'Neutral' Zone After US Stocks Drop For Fourth Day

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index moved to the "Neutral" zone following a decline in U.S. stocks on Thursday.

U.S. major indices recorded losses for the fourth straight day on Thursday, with the Dow Jones turning negative for the year.

PacWest Bancorp PACW shares dropped over 50% on Thursday following a report suggesting the bank may weigh strategic options. The company later confirmed reports about the bank exploring strategic options and assuaged concerns regarding its health.

Investors also digested the policy decision from the Federal Reserve, as the central bank raised rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday. Data on nonfarm payrolls for April will be released today at 8:30 a.m. ET.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 287 points to 33,127.74 on Thursday. The S&P 500 fell 0.72% at 4,061.22, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.49% to settle at 11,966.40 during the session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. WBD, Johnson Controls International plc JCI and The Cigna Group CI today.

At a current reading of 53.0, the index moved to the "Neutral" zone, versus a previous reading of 58.0

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

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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