(By Rich Bieglmeier) For the second time in just a matter of weeks,
FedEx Corporation (
FDX) has cut their profit outlook. It's also the second time the delivery company has warned that the global economy is getting worse.
FedEx and UPS are on the front line of the world economy. When business is booming, the number of shipments rise, and the number of deliveries slows when the economy dips. Makes sense, right?
It may take a while, but FDX's observations should start to show up in the economic data. For manufacturing, it already has as the ISM result has been less than 50 and in contraction mode for the last three months.
Perhaps, the global weakness is why many sectors tapped the brakes relative the S&P 500 last week. iStock expected to see the number of emerging and mature bull members swell. Instead, we saw sectors that were outpacing the key index stall and flatten out while laggards tried to play catch up.
In an oddity, and perhaps bullish omen, for the first time that we can remember, not a single sector made its way on the emerging bear list; although, the mature bear list did grow. We also saw large-cap growth stocks wrestle back to their leadership role, primarily due to Apple Inc. (AAPL).
While FedEx sees trouble on the horizon, stocks continue to push higher thanks to the unlimited promises from the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank. iStock would suggest investors continue to focus on the strongest sectors as the equity indexes rise.
EMERGING BULL: Industries with positive technical analysis traits that are in the early stages, indicating possible above average returns in the near-term:
Asset Mangers
Aluminum
Medical Equipment
Gambling
Clothing
Household Goods
Software
MATURE BULL: Industries that have outperformed and their charts suggest the above average returns could continue:
Specialty Construction
Internet
MATURE BEAR: Industries that have underperformed and, based on their current chart patterns, could continue to lag:
Aerospace
Food/Drug
Electricity
Multi-Utilities
Drug Retail
Specialty Retail
Semiconductors
Gas Distribution
Trucking
Gas & Water Utilities
Utilities
Water
EMERGING BEAR: Industries that have fresh negative technical analysis set ups and could have subpar performance in the weeks ahead:
NONE