Chart Predicts a Double-Digit Breakdown in This Sector: iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (NYSE: ITB)

The stock market put in a rather strong performance upon returning from the long Labor Day holiday weekend. The S&P 500 went on a seven-day win streak and the Dow Jones Industrial Average logged three consecutive triple-digit gains before the markets experienced some profit-taking Thursday.

This rising tide took many boats with it, including the homebuilding sector, which was reeling from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's hint in May that the Fed was considering reducing its bond buying program. The specter of rising interest rates cast a pall over the sector, which relies heavily on mortgage borrowing.

With tensions abating, at least temporarily, in Syria, the flight to safety in U.S. Treasury bonds is easing, so once again, rising interest rates are back in the fore. And this means the homebuilding sector's brief rally is about to come to a screeching halt.

The iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (NYSE: ITB), which tracks the performance of home construction stocks, materials and fixtures makers, and home improvement retailers, rallied in early September. (more)

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