Investor Optimism Falls Further Ahead Of Fed Decision

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed further decline in overall sentiment among U.S. investors on Monday.

U.S. stocks closed slightly higher on Monday, ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting. The Fed will begin its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday, with traders seeing a 99% chance that the central bank will keep rates on hold when it announces its decision on Wednesday.

Canopy Growth Corporation CGC entered Monday into subscription agreements with certain institutional investors in a private placement offering of 22.93 million units at a price of $1.09 per unit.

On the economic data front, the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index fell for a second month to a reading of 45 in September, recording the weakest level in five months, compared to 50 in August and versus market estimates of 50.

Majority of sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with energy and information technology stocks recording the biggest gains on Monday. However, consumer discretionary and real estate stocks closed lower during the session.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 6 points to 34,624.30 on Monday. The S&P 500 rose 0.07% at 4,453.53, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.01% at 13,710.24 during the session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from AutoZone, Inc. AZO, Apogee Enterprises, Inc. APOG and Steelcase Inc. SCS today.

At a current reading of 48.4, the index remained in the "Neutral" zone on Monday, compared to a previous reading of 49.8.

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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