Stock Investors Brace for More Pain as They Bid Market Higher
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The stock market has clawed back from the depths of this month’s selloff, but a look under the hood shows traders are adding a healthy dose of safe haven to their positions.
After an initial rush into the riskiest parts of the market unlocked by US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 90-day pause on most tariffs, investors who piled into safer sectors have fared better. On days the broader market gained, a basket of defensive stocks tracked by Barclays Plc mostly outperformed the stocks of companies whose fortunes are closely tied to the ups and down of the economy. And on days when sentiment soured, a defensive corner of the market still beat cyclical names.