Fear & Greed Index Remains In 'Extreme Greed' Zone Ahead Of Inflation Data; Dow Hits Record High

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index remained in the "Extreme Greed" zone on Monday.

U.S. stocks closed mixed on Monday, with the Dow Jones index climbing to a fresh high during the session.

Diamondback Energy, Inc. FANG shares jumped 9.4% on Monday after company announced it entered into definitive merger agreement with Endeavor Energy Resources valued at $26 million. Shares of CymaBay Therapeutics CBAY jumped over 25% after Gilead Sciences agreed to acquire the company for $32.50 per share in cash.

On the economic data front, the Treasury Department said the U.S. Federal budget deficit shrank to $22 billion in January, compared to the $39 billion gap recorded in the year-ago period.

Data on the consumer price index for January will be released today. Analysts expect the annual inflation rate to slow to 2.9%.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with utilities, energy, and materials stocks recording the biggest gains on Monday. However, information technology and real estate stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.

The Dow Jones closed higher by over 125 points to 38,797.38 on Monday. The S&P 500 fell 0.09% at 5,021.84, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.30% at 15,942.54 during Monday’s session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from AutoNation, Inc. AN, Lyft, Inc. LYFT, The Coca-Cola Company KO, and Marriott International, Inc. MAR today.

At a current reading of 77.71, the index remained in the "Extreme Greed" zone on Monday, versus a prior reading of 77.74.

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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