New York, Feb 1, 2026, 13:28 EST — Market closed.
- U.S. basic materials stocks ended last week sharply lower after a fast reversal in metals.
- Investors are watching China demand signals and U.S. data for the next leg.
- A handful of earnings winners helped, but did not offset the broader slide.
The iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF, a widely followed gauge for U.S. basic materials stocks, closed Friday at $170.29, down about 3.3% on the day. The fund’s net asset value was $170.19, and it finished the week below a 52-week high of $177.01.
The drop matters because the sector sits close to the intersection of rates, the dollar and global growth. The S&P 500 materials group led declines on Friday as U.S.-listed gold and silver miners sank with the broader metals selloff.
Metals traders, meanwhile, hit the brakes after a speculative sprint. “The market thinks Kevin Warsh is rational and that he won’t push aggressively for rate cuts,” said Panmure Liberum analyst Tom Price, after Donald Trump said he had chosen Kevin Warsh to lead the Federal Reserve when Jerome Powell’s term ends in May. Reuters
China added a second pressure point. Its official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) — a survey-based gauge where readings below 50 indicate contraction — fell to 49.3 in January from 50.1 in December, and missed expectations in a Reuters poll. “Beijing will have to do much more in coming months to deliver an annual GDP growth rate above 4.5% in 2026,” Ting Lu at Nomura wrote in a note. Reuters
Inside the sector, the tape showed a tug-of-war between miners and chemicals. Freeport-McMoRan fell about 7.5% at the last trade, while steelmaker Nucor slipped about 1.2%. Chemical maker Dow rose about 1.4% and industrial gas group Linde edged higher.
One bright spot was Air Products and Chemicals, up about 6.5% at the last trade after it reported fiscal first-quarter results and maintained its full-year adjusted earnings outlook. “We had strong results from the base business, with a 10 percent increase in adjusted EPS,” chief executive Eduardo Menezes said in the company’s release. PR Newswire
The setup into Monday is simple, if uncomfortable: materials investors need the commodity complex to stop lurching, and they need signs that demand is not cracking in key end markets. If the dollar keeps firming and metals continue to unwind, miners and chemicals can both get hit — margins on one side, volumes on the other.
What could go differently: a fast rebound in copper and precious metals, or a policy signal out of China that steadies demand expectations, could drag bargain buyers back into the group. The flip side is sharper downside if liquidity thins and the move turns into forced selling across metals-linked names.
Next up is a heavy data week. The Institute for Supply Management releases its manufacturing PMI on the first business day of the month at 10:00 a.m. EST, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is scheduled to publish the January jobs report on Friday, Feb. 6 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern — the two prints most likely to reset rate expectations and, by extension, the risk appetite that has been driving commodity swings.
