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

U.S. stocks settled higher on Thursday, with the Dow Jones index surging more than 900 points during the session after President Donald Trump called off "scheduled" strikes on Iran amid hopes for a peace deal.

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ:LRCX) surged around 13% after Cantor lifted its target to $425 from $320, while Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) climbed 11% after its target rose to $650 from $575.

On the economic data front, U.S. initial jobless claims increased by 4,000 to a three-month high of 229,000 during the first week of June, compared to market estimates of 219,000. Producer prices for final demand rose 1.1% month-over-month in May, the same as in April.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with industrials, materials and information technology stocks recording the biggest gains on Thursday. However, consumer staples and energy stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 930 points to 50,848.75 on Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 1.75% to 7,394.30, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.54% at 25,809.66 during Thursday's session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from The Children’s Place Inc. (NASDAQ:PLCE) today.

What Is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

At a current reading of 29.7, the index remained in the “Fear” zone on Thursday, versus a prior reading of 26.9.

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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