The stocks I'll mention may not necessarily do well over the next few weeks, but if there is a soft landing, they could easily outperform over the next year. One important criterion is p-e to growth. I tend to overweight companies in sectors that I think are well-positioned for the economic outlook going out 6 to 12 months. On that basis, I would overweight consumer cyclicals and financials. Among consumer cyclicals, I would be looking at retailers that have taken market share over the years.
People still love the potential of technology, though.
Having said that, there are some sectors that should benefit from an economic upturn. Drilling companies focused on North America should substantially benefit from increased capital expenditures by exploration and production companies looking for North American gas. The amount of time spent on the Internet fell over the last two months for AOL subscribers for the first time since it went to a flat-rate pricing policy. It remains to be seen if this is a trend, but less time on the Internet means fewer page views and lower advertising. Pfizer is a fund holding.