Benzinga - by Lisa Levin, Benzinga Editor.
The CNN Money Fear and Greed index moved to the "Greed" zone on Friday following the release of latest jobs report.
The U.S. economy added 187,000 jobs in August versus the downwardly revised 157,000 increase in July and compared to market expectations of 170,000. The unemployment rate increased to 3.8% in August from 3.5% in July.
Average hourly earnings for all employees on US private nonfarm payrolls increased by 0.2% to $33.82 in August following a 0.4% growth in the earlier month.
Investors also assessed fresh earnings reports during the session. Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE: DELL) shares jumped over 21% on Friday after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results. Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) shares rose 6% after the company reported upbeat quarterly results.
Majority of sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with energy and materials stocks recording the biggest gains on Friday. However, consumer discretionary, consumer staples and communication services stocks closed lower during the session.
The Dow Jones closed higher by around 116 points to 34,837.71 on Friday. The S&P 500 rose 0.18% at 4,515.77, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.02% at 14,031.81 during the session. The Dow gained 1.4%, while the Nasdaq added 3.3% for the week.
Investors are awaiting earnings results from Brady Corporation (NYSE: BRC), America's Car-Mart, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT) and Zscaler, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZS) today.
At a current reading of 55.7, the index moved to the "Greed" zone on Friday, compared to a previous reading of 52.6.
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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