Dow Tumbles Over 600 Points Ahead of Inflation Data: Investor Sentiment Weakens, Greed Index Remains in ‘Fear’ Zone

The CNN Money Fear and Greed Index showed a further decline in overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the "Fear" zone on Tuesday.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones index falling more than 600 points during the session amid rising tensions in the Middle East ahead of inflation data later this week.

Data on producer prices will be released on Thursday, while the consumer price index is scheduled for release on Friday, with headline CPI seen holding at 3.4% and core easing to 2.4%.

Bloom Energy Corp. (NYSE:BE)/a> shares jumped around 10% on confirmation it will join the S&P 500 before the open on Sept. 21. Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC)/a> gained 9% following a media report that the chipmaker is planning another round of price increases to lift gross margin, an accompanying analyst upgrade, and confirmation that it has processed more than one million wafers using High-NA EUV lithography on its 18A process.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with health care, financial and materials stocks recording the biggest losses on Tuesday. However, energy and utilities stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 628 points to 52,786.07 on Tuesday. The S&P 500 fell 0.58% to 7,673.52, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.32% to 26,421.41 during Tuesday’s session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Signet Jewelers Ltd. (NYSE:SIG)/a>, American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE:AEO)/a> and Core & Main Inc. (NYSE:CNM)/a> today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 40.5, the index remained in the "Fear" zone on Tuesday, versus a prior reading of 42.3.

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 greed.

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