“Another problem weighing on some stocks in the consumer-staples group is the rising dollar, which makes U.S. exports less attractive overseas,” according to Barron’s.
Related: Sticking With Staples ETFs: Is it a Good Idea?
XLP started the year as one of the best-performing non-leveraged sector ETFs. Within the SPDR family, XLP trailed only its utilities counterpart earlier this year. However, XLP is now up just 5.9% and the utilities sector has also fallen out of favor.
Conversely, the cyclical energy and technology sectors are now this year’s best-performing groups. That could be further confirmation investors expect interest rates to rise because cyclical sectors usually perform well as borrowing costs increase.
For more information on the consumer staples sector, visit our consumer staples category.
Consumer Staples Select SPDR (NYSEArca: XLP)
