The CNN Money Fear and Greed Index showed a decline in overall market sentiment, while the index moved to the “Neutral” zone on Thursday.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Thursday, with the Dow Jones index dipping more than 700 points during the session following a decline in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) shares. Shares of the retail giant dipped more than 9% after reporting its slowest domestic sales growth in six years.

Treasury yields continued to rise on Thursday despite the Treasury saying it will at least double repurchases of 10-, 20- and 30-year debt in the coming months, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the buyback operation could be larger than the $4 billion announced.

On the economic data front, U.S. initial jobless claims declined by 6,000 to 206,000 in the second week of August, compared to market estimates of 210,000. The Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index climbed to 47.4 in August from 41.4 in the previous month, recording its strongest level since April 2021 and higher than market expectations of 25.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with health care, consumer discretionary and consumer staples stocks recording the biggest losses on Thursday. However, energy and real estate stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 704 points to 52,759.21 on Thursday. The S&P 500 fell 0.87% to 7,641.16, while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 1% at 26,067.17 during Thursday’s session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BJ) and KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 52.5, the index moved to the “Neutral” zone on Thursday, versus a prior reading of 57.

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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