Market Fear Index — August 2026: 49.4

The Market Fear Index averaged 49.4 in August 2026, reaching a peak of 52 on August 10 and dropping to a low of 44 on August 21. Tensions were driven up by top headlines involving a surprise CIA trip to warn Russia against attacking NATO, Russian mobilization readiness tests, and rising Middle East conflicts involving Iran and a fresh U.S. aircraft carrier deployment. Meanwhile, news about the phasing out of a drone unit and startup founders working harder to keep up with AI agents helped calm market anxiety, pushing the index down slightly late in the month. Things picked back up when a 4-point jump hit on August 22 as Wall Street looked to Nvidia to keep the AI party going. The month closed with additional developments, including Anthropic signing a $35 billion cloud deal backed by Nvidia while U.S. tech stocks slipped as an Iran truce expired.

Peak 52 on 2026-08-10 · low 44 on 2026-08-21 · locked record · ← July · Market Fear Index timeline · September → · World Tension, same month

• Exclusive | CIA Chief’s Surprise Moscow Trip Was to Warn Russia Not to Attack NATO WSJ · 2026-08-26
• Exclusive | U.S. Sending Fresh Aircraft Carrier to Middle East Amid Iran War Strain WSJ · 2026-08-13
• Exclusive | Russia Tests Readiness for New Round of Military Mobilization WSJ · 2026-08-25
• Iran’s Secret Plan to Escalate the War WSJ · 2026-08-16
• Trump Thought Opening the Strait of Hormuz Was Imminent. Iran Had Other Plans. WSJ · 2026-08-09
• U.S. Intel Links Russia to Explosive Drone at German Airport WSJ · 2026-08-07
• Exclusive | U.S. and Ukrainian Forces Went Head-to-Head in an Exercise. Ukraine’s Drones Won. WSJ · 2026-08-13
• Gold shows early signs of reclaiming safe-haven appeal after Iran war selloff Reuters · 2026-08-17

• U.S. Tech Stocks Slip as Bond Yields Hit Decade Highs; Iran Truce Expires
• Exclusive | Anthropic Signs $35 Billion Cloud Deal Backed by Nvidia
• Meta Reaches $18 Billion Settlement With 48 States Over Child-Safety Claims