The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a slight increase in the overall fear level, while the index remained in the “Fear” zone on Friday.

U.S. stocks settled lower on Friday, with the Dow Jones index falling more than 250 points during the session after the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index crashed to a record low in April and the March monthly inflation rate printed at 0.9%, the highest monthly increase since June 2022.

Meanwhile, Trump vowed to block ship traffic tied to Iran in and out of the Strait of Hormuz after the Islamabad peace talks over the weekend without an agreement.

Organon & Co. (NASDAQ:OGN) shares jumped 28% on Friday following reports suggesting Sun Pharmaceutical submitted a binding offer to acquire the company.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with health care, financial and consumer staples stocks recording the biggest losses on Friday. However, information technology and materials stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 269 points to 47,916.57 on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 0.11% to 6,816.89, while the Nasdaq Composite surged 0.35% at 22,902.89 during Friday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) and Fastenal Co. (NASDAQ:FAST) today.

What Is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 37.7, the index remained in the “Fear” zone on Friday, versus a prior reading of 37.8.

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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