“With the strong dollar, f/x should again clip expected outsized earnings growth at the multinationals which should help the more commodity exposed, domestic names unless we are entering an anomalous period of a strong dollar and rising commodities,” said Deutsche Bank.
Related: Sticking With Staples ETFs: Is it a Good Idea?
Related to interest rate speculation, there is another problem for staples stocks: The rising dollar. Over the past several weeks, the greenback has caught fire, which is not good news for the staples sector because many of the names found in ETFs like XLP generate significant portions of their sales in international markets.
Earlier this year, defensive sectors, such as staples, were leaders, but that trend has reversed. 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 sector, visit our consumer staples category.