The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed some easing in the overall fear level, while the index remained in the “Extreme Fear” zone on Friday.

U.S. stocks settled higher on Friday, with the Dow Jones index gaining more than 1% during the session as a wave of dovish comments from Federal Reserve officials flipped market expectations toward a rate cut next month.

Risk appetite returned the moment New York Fed President John Williams suggested the central bank has room to ease policy further, pointing to a cooling labor market. His tone was reinforced by Gov. Stephen Miran, who explicitly said he would vote for a cut following "dovish implications" from the September jobs report released Thursday.

However, all three major indices recorded big losses last week, with the S&P 500 and ...