Tech Left Behind

The S&P 500 has done fine since election day, rising by 1.5 percent. But one sector that has lagged has been the tech stocks. Tech stocks are the only growth sector in the red on the S&P 500, off 1.7 percent over the past week. Industrials, meanwhile, are up 5 percent and financial stocks have climbed 10 percent. 

It's the biggest tech stocks that have suffered the most. Amazon.com and Facebook are each down 5.5 percent over the past week.


Why has this happened? One theory is that investors are booking profits in tech – by far the third quarter’s best-performing group  – and moving into sectors perceived to be the biggest beneficiaries of the Trump administration. In addition, tech companies stand to benefit relatively less than other industry groups from tax cuts, since tech firms already tend to pay lower effective tax rates.