Because of Apple's (AAPL) struggles this year, the S&P 500 Technology sector has been one of the weaker performing sectors so far in 2013. Ā This has allowed the Financial sector to make up significant ground in its race to take back its spot as the biggest sector in the market.
Below is a look at the current weightings of the ten S&P 500 sectors compared to where they stood at the end of 2011 and 2012. Ā As shown, at the end of 2011, the Technology sector made up 19.02% of the S&P 500, while the Financial sector was at 13.43%. Ā The Financial sector made nice gains on Tech in 2012 as it narrowed the gap by 2.27 percentage points (18.95% vs. 15.63%). Ā Over the first five and a half months of 2013, the spread has tightened even more, and the Financial sector is now just 1.3 percentage points below Tech. Ā Technology has seen its weighting fall 1.11 percentage points this year down to 17.83%, while the Financial sector has seen its weighting gain 0.90 percentage points up to 16.53%. Ā Another five months of similar action would put the Financial sector back on top.
Note that we don't think it's a good thing when the Financial sector is the biggest sector of the market. Ā The Financial Services sector is there to "service" the rest of the economy as it grows. Ā Back before the financial crisis hit in late 2007, the Financial sector was by far the biggest sector of the market, and we all saw how that ended.
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