Skip Header
Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

Sector movers: Miners drag after soft Chinese inflation data

(Sharecast News) - Industrial metals miners was among the weakest segment of the market at the start of the week. Dragging on investor sentiment were weaker-than-expected readings on headline consumer and producer prices in the People's Republic of China for the month of June.

An unexpected dip in headline CPI to -0.2% year-on-year led to a fair bit of market commentary regarding the need for further economic stimulus in the Asian giant.

Yet analysts seemed generally cautious, instead anticipating more targetted measures on the part of Beijing.

Broker commentary was not very supportive for individual stocks either with Barclays trimming its target prices for some after refreshing the commodity price deck underlying its estimates for the sector.

For their part, in a research note sent to clients, analysts at Citi said: "Seasonality lags before the China financing momentum change impacts underlying metals demand is likely to keep the sector range-bound in the short term.

"In addition, we do not expect a broad-based China stimulus and therefore the market exuberance around stimulus expectations could get tempered."

Interest rate sensitive REITS and Utilities were also soft ahead of UK wage data due out the next day, given the risk that any upside surprise might see Gilt yields continue to move higher.

Oil and Gas on the other hand caught a bid with Oanda analyst Craig Erlam noting a potential breakout the week before in Brent crude oil futures.

Looking past China and recent moves in UK interest rates, Morgan Stanley strategist Graham Secker said that if inflation rolled over, this lifting macro sentiment, then UK mid and small cap stocks looked "cheap" and would garner interest.

Top performing sectors so far today

Industrial Transportation 3,758.68 +2.20%

Travel & Leisure 7,493.97 +1.65%

Non-life Insurance 2,932.98 +1.10%

Medical Equipment and Services 10,050.59 +0.95%

Oil, Gas and Coal 7,902.11 +0.71%

Bottom performing sectors so far today

Industrial Metals & Mining 6,164.75 -0.71%

Real Estate Investment Trusts 1,971.12 -0.48%

Tobacco 28,251.63 -0.48%

Chemicals 9,886.13 -0.45%

Gas, Water & Multiutilities 5,635.21 -0.40%

Share this article

Related Sharecast Articles

Sector movers: Autos, Big Oil drop as Brent futures and US Treasury yields slide
(Sharecast News) - Stocks on the FTSE 350 slumped on Tuesday led by declines in cyclical areas of the market such as Autos and Banks.
Sector movers: Investors seek out high dividend names
(Sharecast News) - Utilities paced gains on the FTSE 350 on Thursday as investors added to their positions in interest rate sensitive names in a bid to lock in current dividend yields.
Sector movers: China and US growth concerns weigh on commodity plays
(Sharecast News) - Stocks in the UK ended the session clearly in the red amid growth concerns in China and the US, which resulted in broad-based losses in the commodities space.
Sector movers: Defence shares drag on market amid investor caution
(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 350 started the month of September on a down note with Defence issues weakest as analysts acted on the sector's lofty valuation.

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

Award-winning online share dealing

Search, compare and select from thousands of shares.

Expert insights into investing your money

Our team of experts explore the world of share dealing.