Benzinga - by Lisa Levin, Benzinga Editor.
The CNN Money Fear and Greed index moved to the "Fear" zone on Thursday.
U.S. stocks closed sharply lower on Thursday as investors digested economic reports following the Fed’s interest-rate decision. The Federal Reserve maintained the federal funds rate within the 5.25% to 5.5% range at its September meeting. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell, expressed that a majority of committee members view another rate increase as appropriate during the remaining two Federal Open Market Committee meetings.
U.S. initial jobless claims fell by 20,000 to 201,000 in the week ending Sept. 16, recording the lowest reading since late January and compared to market estimates of 225,000. The U.S. current account deficit shrank to $212.1 billion in the second quarter from a revised reading of a $214.5 billion gap in the prior period and compared to the market estimates of a $221.0 billion gap.
FedEx Corporation (NYSE: FDX) shares gained 4.5% on Thursday after the company reported mixed first-quarter financial results and issued guidance.
All major sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with real estate, consumer discretionary and materials stocks recording the biggest losses on Thursday.
The Dow Jones closed lower by around 370 points to 34,070.42 on Thursday. The S&P 500 fell 1.64% at 4,330.00, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.82% at 13,223.99 during the session.
Investors are awaiting earnings results from Dynatronics Corporation (NASDAQ: DYNT) and NETSOL Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTWK) today.
At a current reading of 39.5, the index moved to the "Fear" zone on Thursday, compared to a previous reading of 48.
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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