Market Volatility Falls; S&P 500 Settles Lower

The S&P 500 settled lower on Wednesday, ahead of key inflation data and the Fed’s policy meeting next week.

Traders are now seeing around 69% chance that the Federal Reserve will maintain interest rates at its upcoming meeting.

Yext, Inc. YEXT shares jumped over 38% on Wednesday after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter results and issued strong FY24 forecast. Campbell Soup Company CPB shares fell around 9% after the company reported third-quarter results and reaffirmed FY23 guidance.

Major sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a mixed note, with energy and real estate stocks recording the biggest gains on Wednesday. However, communication services and information technology stocks closed lower during the session.

The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.75% to close at 14,303.29 on Wednesday, amid losses in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN and Microsoft Corp MSFT.

The S&P 500 fell 0.38%, while the Dow Jones rose 0.27% to 33,665.02 in the previous session.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) fell 0.1% to close at 13.94 on Wednesday, reaching the lowest level since Feb. 14, 2020.

What is CBOE Volatility Index?

The CBOE Volatility Index, popularly known as VIX, is a measure of the equity market's expectation of volatility based on S&P 500 index call and put options.

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