Dow Jumps Over 550 Points Following Economic Data: Investor Sentiment Improves, But Fear & Greed Index Remains in ‘Fear’ Zone

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

U.S. stocks settled higher on Thursday, with the Dow Jones index gaining over 550 points during the session as investors digested the latest economic data.

September producer prices rose 6.3% year over year, the biggest gain since 2022 and above the 5.5% economists expected. A Fed hike at the meeting in two weeks is now seen as roughly a coin flip.

AI spending fears weighed on the global chip complex overnight. Seoul-listed shares of SK Hynix have now lost nearly a third of their value over the past seven sessions, the worst slump since November 2008.

Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE:SCHW) shares fell around 3% in Thursday’s session after the company reported mixed third-quarter results. ManpowerGroup Inc. (NYSE:MAN) shares dipped about 16% after the company reported worse-than-expected third-quarter sales results.

On the other economic data front, U.S. retail sales climbed 0.8% month-over-month in September, compared to a revised 1.3% gain in August and topping market estimates of a 0.3% gain. U.S. initial jobless claims climbed by 1,000 to 199,000 in the week ending Oct. 10, compared to market expectations of 200,000.

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

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 556 points to 52,177.69 on Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 0.33% to 7,744.06, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.08% at 26,713.03 during Thursday’s session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE:MTB), Travelers Companies Inc. (NYSE:TRV) and Truist Financial Corp. (NYSE:TFC) today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 31, the index remained in the “Fear” zone on Thursday, versus a prior reading of 27.

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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