S&P Hits Record High Amid Easing Trade Tensions: Investor Sentiment Improves, Fear Index Remains In 'Greed' Zone

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

U.S. stocks settled higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 surging to fresh records during the session as investors responded to easing trade tensions and geopolitical risks with robust buying.

President Donald Trump said the U.S. is in the process of finalizing multiple trade agreements, suggesting that four to five deals are either completed or close to completion ahead of a key July 9 deadline. Sentiment was further lifted after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed a new U.S.-China trade accord that includes tariff reductions and safeguards for rare earth imports.

Nike Inc. NKE jumped 15% on Friday after reporting quarterly earnings that crushed Wall Street expectations. Boeing Inc. BA advanced 6% following a bullish analyst note from RedBurn Atlantic.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with communication services, consumer discretionary and industrials stocks recording the biggest gains on Friday. However, energy and health care stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 432 points to 43,819.27 on Friday. The S&P 500 rose 0.52% to 6,173.07 with the index gaining as much as 0.76% to a high of 6,187.68 earlier during the session, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.52% to 20,273.46 during Friday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Progress Software Corp. PRGS and Quantum Corp. QMCO today.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 64.6, the index remained in the “Greed” zone on Friday, versus a prior reading of 62.7.

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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