Shares of power producers rose as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank was "close" to pulling the trigger on rate cuts.
Rising interest rates caused the utilities sector to lag the broad market for roughly two years, but the sector could return to favor as rates start to fall.
Shares of Texas utility Xcel Energy rose even after The Wall Street Journal reported that the largest wildfire in Texas history was ignited by power lines, according to state investigators.
Texas A&M Forest Service said investigators found that power lines started the Smokehouse Creek Fire, which destroyed dozens of homes and delivered a devastating blow to ranches in the region as it burned more than 1 million acres in the Texas Panhandle. Spanish electric utility Iberdrola offered to buy out the part of affiliate Avangrid it doesn't already own for about $2.49 billion.
The SPDR Select Sector Utilities exchange-traded fund, which tracks the utilities industry group of the S&P 500, is now about 1% below the breakeven line for the year to date, having come close to correction territory in February.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-07-24 1744ET
