The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a decline in overall sentiment among U.S. investors on Wednesday.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq recording losses for the third consecutive session. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares lost more than 3% during the session.

On the economic data front, the ISM services PMI rose to 54.5 in August, signalling the strongest growth in the services activity in six months, up from July’s reading of 52.7. The U.S. trade deficit widened to $65 billion in July versus a revised $63.7 billion in the prior month, and compared to market expectations for a $68 billion gap.

Following the services data, traders now see more than 40% probability of a rate hike in November. However, traders are pricing in a 93% chance that the US Federal Reserve will hold rates this month.

Majority of sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with information technology and consumer discretionary stocks recording the biggest losses on Wednesday. However, energy and utilities stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing higher during the session.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 199 points to 34,443.19 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 fell 0.70% at 4,465.48, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.06% at 13,872.47 during the session.

At a current reading of 56.2, the index remained in the "Greed" zone on Wednesday, compared to a previous reading of 58.5.

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

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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