Shares of industrial and transportation companies ticked up as traders hedged their bets on the outlook for growth and inflation after a surprisingly strong consumer-price survey.
The SPDR Industrial Select Sector exchange-traded fund, which tracks the industrial group of the Standard & Poor's 500, is up slightly for the year to date, outperforming previous stock-market leaders such as technology, continuing a trend from the end of 2021.
"We saw a healthy rotation of capital into sectors outside mega-cap tech," said Eric Marshall, president of mutual-fund firm Hodges Capital. "[Sectors] where it's been painful to be an active manager in previous years having exposure to industrials, consumer discretionary...they really paid off for us."
The U.S. economy grew at a modest pace in the closing weeks of 2021 as ongoing supply-chain issues and a shortage of available workers held back production, the Federal Reserve said, in the latest "Beige Book" regional survey of economic activity.
General Electric shares ticked up after analysts at brokerage Bank of America Global Research estimated that the company's free cash flow during the fourth quarter was about $5.5 billion to $6.5 billion, a sign of progress on the liquidity front.
Engine maker Cummins appointed veteran manufacturing executive Bonnie Fetch to oversee its global supply chain as shortages of parts and logistics bottlenecks curtail production of heavy-duty trucks and equipment.
Danish shipping giant A.P. Moeller-Maersk said it's accelerating its decarbonization targets, aiming to achieve net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions in 2040, a decade ahead of its initial 2050 goal.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-12-22 1630ET
