The S&P Materials Select Sector Index closed this trading week with a -3.20% dip, while the Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSEARCA:XLB) also plunged -5.18%.
On Jan. 19, gold and silver futures rallied to their highest finishes since November, with February Comex gold (XAUUSD:CUR) closing +1.7% to $1,843.20/oz. and March silver (XAGUSD:CUR) settling +3.2% to $24.23/oz. Gold prices settled at $1,829.64/oz by market close on Friday, while silver closed at $24.22/oz.
It was a rough week for lumber, with prices (LB1:COM) falling from $1,279.70 per thousand board feet at the start of the week to $1,143.70 at close on Friday, implying a 11.2% weekly dip.
Meanwhile, copper prices rose during the week, on hopes of further policy easing in China. Copper Futures (HG1:COM) reached a high of $4.59/pound on Thursday, before closing at $4.51 on Friday.
Taking a look at this week's top gainers and losers among basic material stocks ($300M market cap or more):
McEwen Mining (NYSE:MUX)+3.52%; CEO Rob McEwen said on January 20 that its Los Azules copper project in Argentina is attracting the attention of large producers as a potential acquisition.
Danimer Scientific (NYSE:DNMR)-31.06%; The stock is appearing in the losers list for the third consecutive week. Shares have fallen -88.47% in the last 12 months, well below the high of $64.29 in February 2021. However, SA contributor Stan Vick suggests prices are ripe to rise as the biotechnology company taps growth opportunities.
Lightwave Logic (NASDAQ:LWLG)-28.95%; Shares have been slipping since early December, and have dropped -55.30% in the past month.