The land that time forgot

One of my favourite activities at the end of any volatile year is to look at sectors that have failed to keep up with the pack.

But what is quite extraordinary about 2009 is that virtually every index and super sector has increased in price over the last 12 months. Many sectors have lagged the benchmark in relative terms but nearly every major sector or index that comprises utilities, fixed telecoms, global infrastructure and pharma stocks is up between 5% and 15% in absolute terms. Only Japanese stocks are challengers for the title of worst performers – more on that below. This relative underperformance tells me that any good contrarian should be filling their boots with defensive stocks. But these are being ...