hello it’s been a brutal week for consumersector stocks while the sp 500 index is edging closer to bear market territory “my indicators suggest that the bearmarket move can keep its hold through the summer months” says katie stockton founder and managing partner of fairlead strategies in this week’s etf wrap she also says her recently launched fairlead tactical sector etf may help “protect downside in this type of environment” please send feedback and tips to christineidzelismarketwatchcom you can also follow me on twitter at cidzelis and find me on linkedin in a brutal week for retail stocks the defensive consumerstaples sector was not spared the consumer staples select sector spdr fund xlp fell 64 wednesday while the consumer discretionary select sector spdr fund xly dropped 65 according to factset data the carnage came within a broader stockmarket slump with the sp 500 spx falling 4 wednesday for its biggest daily drop since june 2020 the sp 500’s consumerstaples and consumerdiscretionary sectors on wednesday booked their biggest percentage drop since march 2020 according to dow jones market data “we’re in a bearmarket move” with sharp relief rallies presenting “better selling opportunities until you get a longterm bottom” said katie stockton founder and managing partner of fairlead strategies in a phone interview “my indicators suggest that the bearmarket move can keep its hold through the summer months” stockton is the portfolio manager for the recently launched fairlead tactical sector etf tack  an active us equity fund that uses a systematic strategy and is rebalanced monthly the fund which began trading march 23 is so far faring better than the sp 500 index shares of the fairlead tactical sector etf are down 18 this month through wednesday after falling 33 in april factset data show that compares with the sp 500’s 88 drop last month and a decline of 5 in may through wednesday “over the course of the fund’s life it’s gotten increasingly risk off” said stockton partly through a more defensive sector positioning that includes exposure to consumer staples she said the etf can help “protect downside in this type of environment” where stocks are selling off the sp 500 was trading down thursday afternoon nearing bear market territory which it would enter with a close of about 3837 according to dow jones market data the fairlead tactical sector etf which invests in spdr etfs has shifted to a 50 position in shortterm treasuries spts  longterm treasuries sptl and gold gld  stockton said while the fund’s sectors exposures are “fairly defensive” including consumer staples xlp  utilities xlu  real estate xlre and energy xle  consumer staples is considered a defensive sector but it has taken a beating this week as earning misses reported by target corp tgt and walmart inc wmt have increased investors’ recession fears amid concern that high inflation may be squeezing americans’ spending read target stock plunges as profit drops on consumer spending shifts and jump in freight costs the vanguard consumer staples etf vdc  invesco sp 500 equal weight consumer staples etf rhs and fidelity covington trust msci consumer staples index etf fsta all fell more than 6 wednesday according to factset data walmart a retail giant in the sp 500 index’s consumerstaples sector is down around 19 this week based on thursday afternoon trading levels factset data show at last check and target a departmentstore chain in the sp 500’s battered consumer discretionary sector has this week tanked around 30 based on thursday afternoon trading read if you thought walmart and target had disappointing earnings these retailers did so much worse so far this year the consumer discretionary select sector spdr fund has plunged 30 through wednesday far exceeding the nearly 7 decline for the consumer staples select sector spdr fund over the same period factset data show “inflation always hits the lower income cohorts hardest and first” according to a may 18 markets note from the sevens report walmart’s earnings results “imply that’s starting to happen now” the report says warning that “a further economic slowdown” risks weighing more broadly on the consumer discretionary select sector spdr fund the sevens report suggested that walmart’s results “somewhat refutes the ‘defensive’ nature of consumer staples at least partially” while also pointing to the consumer shift that the retailer saw toward brand names instead of “private label” as a sign of inflation weighing on consumers read walmart says consumers are trading down to private label for items like dairy and bacon “the shift from brand names to generic is a potential threat” to procter  gamble co pg  which is the biggest holding in the consumer staples select sector spdr fund xlp according to the stevens report “we don’t think it invalidates consumer staples as a defensive play but it does imply an equalweight etf might be better than xlp to diversify the risk a bit more” the invesco sp 500 equal weight consumer staples etf rhs “equal weights the consumer staples in the sp 500 providing more diversification against changing consumer trends” according to the report shares of the invesco sp 500 equal weight consumer staples etf are down around 3 this year through wednesday factset data show as usual here’s your weekly look at the top and bottom etf performers over the past week through wednesday according to factset source factset through wednesday may 18 2022 excluding etns and leveraged products includes nyse nasdaq and cboe traded etfs of 500 million or greater simplify asset management said may 17 that it was launching the simplify macro strategy etf fig  a fund that aims for “equitylike returns with lower volatility” by investing in equity fixed income alternative etfs and derivatives teucrium trading announced may 17 that the teucrium agricultural strategy no k1 etf till would begin trading on the new york stock exchange the actively managed fund provides futures price exposure to corn wheat soybean and sugar markets using a “long only” strategy   this portfolio manager’s strategy uses just one etf and his own ‘crash indicator’ to beat the market by 530 marketwatch   investors who shorted russia etfs are now stuck paying neverending fees bloomberg   first crypto etfs to launch in australia underwhelm on debut financial times   russiaukraine war roiling global wheat and corn markets a hard look at soft commodity etfs cnbc