Investor Fear Eases Slightly Ahead Of Big Earnings

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed some easing in the overall fear level but remained in the "Fear" zone on Monday.

The Nasdaq Composite settled higher on Monday ahead of earnings reports from several major companies.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Alphabet Inc. GOOGL, Microsoft Corporation MSFT, and General Motors Company GM today.

The Dow fell 1.6% last week, while the Nasdaq dipped 3.2% to record losses for the second straight week.

Chevron Corporation CVX shares fell 3.7% on Monday after the company disclosed a deal to acquire Hess Corporation HES for $53 billion.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with energy and materials stocks recording the biggest losses on Monday. However, communication services and information technology stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 190 points to 32,936.41 on Monday. The S&P 500 fell 0.17% at 4,217.04, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.27% at 13,018.33 during Monday’s session.

At a current reading of 26.7, the index remained in the "Fear" zone on Monday, compared to a previous reading of 27.

What is the 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.

Read Next: Top 4 Consumer Stocks That May Crash This Quarter