It's not a sign of economic health when soapmakers lead S&P 500

New York

THE best-performing US stocks right now are those that usually do well when the economy isn't, makers of everything from household cleaning products to food. It's yet another black cloud for investors fretting over a growth slowdown.

Consumer staples stocks in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index - which include Procter & Gamble Co and Coca-Cola Co - have outpaced the benchmark gauge for seven straight weeks, the longest stretch since November 2007, when the US economy was on the brink of its last recession. Valuations have also jumped, with the group's price-earnings ratio 14 per cent above the five-year average, Bloomberg data shows.