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Market Pulse: Materials and Construction Fly on Stimulus Hopes
Market Pulse: Materials and Construction Fly on Stimulus Hopes
David Russell
January 7, 2021

Yesterday there was more evidence of big tech’s fading importance: massive rallies in chemical stocks, industrial metals and construction firms.

The Dow Jones Heavy Construction Index ($DJUSHV) jumped 8.3 percent on Wednesday. It outpaced the S&P 500 by 7.8 percentage points, the biggest one-day outperformance in over four years. Chemicals and metals also jumped, but less dramatically.

Meanwhile, the Nasdaq-100 fell almost 2 percent relative to the S&P 500. That was its worst one-day relative strength since Pfizer’s (PFE) vaccine announcement lifted launched a rally on November 9.

Investors are hoping for more stimulus from the new Congress, plus some kind of infrastructure package. Combined with the recoveries in Asia, it’s another sign of sentiment shifting toward cyclical value socks and away from big tech stocks.

This also points to faster inflation and higher interest rates. The coming months could be very different from market conditions we’ve seen most of the last decade.

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About the author

David Russell is Global Head of Market Strategy at TradeStation. Drawing on nearly two decades of experience as a financial journalist and analyst, his background includes equities, emerging markets, fixed-income and derivatives. He previously worked at Bloomberg News, CNBC and E*TRADE Financial. Russell systematically reviews countless global financial headlines and indicators in search of broad tradable trends that present opportunities repeatedly over time. Customers can expect him to keep them appraised of sector leadership, relative strength and the big stories – especially those overlooked by other commentators. He’s also a big fan of generating leverage with options to limit capital at risk.