Sector movers: Miners gain on investors’ hopes for Fed rate cuts

Miners and Utilities paced gains on the stock market in the middle of the week after the release of a flurry of weaker-than-expected economic data Stateside fanned hopes for a decline in interest rates.

In turn, that dragged on the US dollar and boosted metals’ prices.

By the end of trading, the US dollar index had slipped by 0.36% to 105.34, while copper futures jumped by over 2%.

The odds of a first 25 basis point interest rate cut by the Fed in September was being put at 74% by Fed funds traders, according to the CME Fed Watch tool.

In particular, investors took note of the renewed and large drop in the Institute for Supply Management’s services sector purchasing managers’ index from a reading of 53.8 for May to 48.8 in June (consensus: 52.5).

That marked the second time in three months that the PMI had fallen below the 50 point levels that marks the threshold between a contraction and an expansion in the sector.

Worth noting, the night before the head of the US central bank, Jerome Powell, said he was pleased with the resumption of the downwards trend in inflation.

However, it was too soon to say whether the Federal Reserve might be able to cut rates by the end of the summer.

Upwards target price revisions out of JP Morgan he Antofagasta, Health and Safety and Rio Tinto likely also played a hand behind gains in the industrial mining space.

Nonetheless, striking a more subdued note, the analysts told clients: “European Metals & Mining has underperformed (SXXP) by 7% YTD and typical macro-economic drivers are muted for H2’24; JPM Economists predict ~4.5% China GDP growth and no significant stimulus, plus the US election in Q4 is likely to amplify macro uncertainty.”

Top performing sectors so far today

Precious Metals and Mining 10,748.80 +4.04%

Personal Goods 13,618.16 +3.07%

Chemicals 8,335.83 +2.87%

Industrial Metals & Mining 6,911.26 +2.41%

Gas, Water & Multi-utility 5,747.54 +2.22%

Bottom performing sectors so far today

Oil, Gas and Coal 9,306.09 -0.55%

Retailers 3,747.11 -0.33%

Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 22,232.88 -0.28%

Personal Care, Drug and Grocery Stores 4,052.25 -0.07%

Alternative Energy 0.00 0.00%