Building blocks: Industrials and materials – Claire Fleming and Robert Reynolds

Today on the show, we welcome equity research analysts Robert Reynolds and Claire Fleming. They break down what’s shaping the industrials and materials sectors, and what’s on their radar as we head into the second quarter. Robert and Claire provide an update on the copper supply story, explaining that there have been significant changes in the outlook since November of last year. Concerns were previously focused on how higher interest rates might impact demand in areas such as renewables and electric vehicles, although the biggest change has been in the supply outlook. This has caused challenges to sprout across the globe, which could eventually impact benchmark commodity prices. In regards to the materials sector, Claire and Robert cover a wide range of industries such as copper miners, forest products, coal, and chemicals companies. The packaging sector in particular has recently undergone changes that are independent of consumer behaviour. They add consumer Packaged Goods companies are refocusing on volume growth as inflation-driven pricing growth starts to fade away.

Recorded on March 22^nd, 2024.

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