Utilities (XLU) was the steady winner throughout the week, even during the pullback caused by fears of no stimulus deal being reached. For money that wants to stay in equities in lieu of low interest rates and uncertain inflation, utilities is seen as the safest sector. So even as stimulus fears mounted, XLU continued to stay strong compared to the S&P 500.
Energy (XLE) also had a great week with a big one day gain of 3.75% on Thursday thanks to stability in crude oil prices and analyst projections of strong demand for at least two decades. XLE growth still lags far behind recent gains in crude oil futures. It will take some time to burn off over supply and the tech bubble continues to weigh down this sector (redux of 2000 energy story).
However, Technology (XLK) rallied on Friday to take over the second place spot. Advance/Decline lines showing great breadth as big tech shares the love with their smaller siblings.
Communications (XLC) was the week's loser, with Facebook (FB) having the most weight in the index. FB did not have a great week, possibly impacted by political focus on the platform.