Dow Hits Another Record Close: Investor Sentiment Improves, But Fear Index Remains In 'Greed' Zone

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

U.S. stocks settled higher on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones index surging to a record close during the session.

Morgan Stanley MS shares gained 6.5% after the bank topped market estimates for both earnings and revenue. United Airlines UAL also reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results.

On the economic data front, export prices in the U.S. declined by 0.7% month-over-month in September, exceeding market estimates of a 0.4% fall. Import prices declined by 0.4% from the previous month in September.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with utilities, financials, and real estate stocks recording the biggest gains on Wednesday. However, communication services and consumer staples stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 337 points to 43,077.70 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 rose 0.47% to 5,842.47, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.28% to close at 18,367.08 during Wednesday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from The Travelers Companies, Inc. TRV, Netflix, Inc. NFLX, and Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. MMC today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 69.6, the index remained in the “Greed” zone on Wednesday, versus a prior reading of 66.9.

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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