S&P 500 Records Best Session Since January 2023: Investor Sentiment Improves, But Greed Index Remains In 'Extreme Fear' Zone

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed some improvement in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Extreme Fear” zone on Thursday.

U.S. stocks settled higher on Thursday, with the S&P 500 index, as tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY, notching its best daily performance since January 2023.

On the economic data front, U.S. initial jobless claims declined by 17,000 to 230,000 in the week ending August 3, compared to market estimates of 240,000. U.S. wholesale inventories increased by 0.2% month-over-month to $903 billion in June, compared to a revised 0.5% rise in the earlier month.

US Foods Holding Corp. USFD reported better-than-expected sales for the second quarter. Eli Lilly And Co LLY reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results and raised its full-year guidance.

All sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with communication services, industrials, and information technology stocks recording the biggest gains on Thursday.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 683 points to 39,446.49 on Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 2.30% at 5,319.31, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.87% at 16,660.02 during Thursday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from EchoStar Corporation SATS, American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. AXL, and AMC Networks Inc. AMCX today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 21.7, the index remained in the “Extreme Fear” zone on Thursday, versus a prior reading of 19.6.

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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