Stock Market in Fear as VIX Soars; Jabil, Dollar General, Williams-Sonoma, and FedEx Earnings Awaited
By Stocks closed mostly lower on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling by over 280 points and the S&P 500 dropping 0.70%. The Nasdaq Composite, however, added 0.05% to close at 11,434.05.[0] This comes as the CNN Money Fear and Greed Index moved to the “Extreme Fear” zone, with a current reading of 21.[1] This is a sharp drop from the greed level of 69 where it was a month ago.[1]
The drop in stocks comes as investors are worried about the stability of the US financial system following the sudden collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank. This led to a sharp jump in the CBOE's Volatility Index, or VIX, which surged 23% to its highest level since October.[2] The VIX has been increasing, and, over the last year, no dramatic upsurge has concluded before reaching 35 points, suggesting that the rise may not be over, even though the US government is taking action to restore faith in the financial system.[3]
The Dow Jones and the S&P 500 closed lower by around 345 points and 1.45%, respectively, on Friday. The Nasdaq Composite dipped 1.76% to settle at 11,138.89 during the session.[0] Investors are now awaiting earnings results from Jabil Inc., Dollar General Corporation, Williams-Sonoma, Inc., and FedEx Corporation today.[4]
In the crypto industry, the Fear & Greed Index is a widely followed measure of market volatility that tracks S&P 500 stock options.[5] The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators and ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.[5]
It is clear that the US stock market is in a state of fear, and investors are hoping that earnings results from the major companies today will help ease the situation.
0. “Fear & Greed Index Moves To ‘Extreme Fear’ Zone As Dow Dips Over 250 Points – Credit Suisse Group (NYSE:C” Benzinga, 16 Mar. 2023, https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/23/03/31374208/fear-greed-index-moves-to-extreme-fear-zone-as-dow-dips-over-250-points
1. “Bitcoin Price at Risk as VIX Surges, Fear and Greed Index Slips” BanklessTimes, 13 Mar. 2023, https://www.banklesstimes.com/news/2023/03/13/bitcoin-price-at-risk-as-vix-surges-fear-and-greed-index-slips
2. “SVB crisis: Wall Street's VIX ‘fear gauge' spikes to 4-month high” Markets Insider, 13 Mar. 2023, https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/svb-crisis-silicon-valley-bank-wall-street-fear-gauge-vix-2023-3
3. “Stocks Volatility Spike Above 30 Points Has Room to Rise: Chart” Yahoo News, 13 Mar. 2023, https://news.yahoo.com/stocks-volatility-spike-above-30-142524931.html
4. “Why Fear Level Among US Investors Is Decreasing – Credit Suisse Group (NYSE:CS), Algonquin Power (NYSE:AQ” Benzinga, 17 Mar. 2023, https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/23/03/31393229/why-fear-level-among-us-investors-is-decreasing
5. “Why Fear Level Among US Investors Is Increasing By Benzinga” Investing.com UK, 13 Mar. 2023, https://uk.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/why-fear-level-among-us-investors-is-increasing-2947486
