The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed some improvement in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the “Fear” zone on Wednesday.

U.S. stocks settled higher on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones index gaining more than 300 points during the session.

Nvidia Corp. ( NVDA ) shares jumped over 5% on Wednesday in sympathy with AMD after reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results and Google which raised its FY25 capital expenditure guidance. The Walt Disney Co. ( DIS ) reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results.

On the economic data front, the U.S. trade deficit increased to $98.4 billion in December versus a revised $78.9 billion gap in the previous month and compared to market estimates of a $96.6 billion gap. The ISM services PMI fell to 52.8 in January versus a revised reading of 54 in December, and down from estimates of 54.3.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with real estate, information technology, and financial stocks recording gains on Wednesday. However, communication services and consumer discretionary stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 317 points to 44,873.28 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 rose 0.39% to 6,061.48, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.19% at 19,692.33 during Wednesday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. ( BMY ) , Amazon.com Inc. ( AMZN ) and Honeywell International Inc. ( HON ) today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 39.6, the index remained in the “Fear” zone on Wednesday, versus a prior reading of 38.9.

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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