Skip to content

In honor of Veterans Day, all of our locations will be closed on Tuesday, Nov. 11. 

Plan Today. Protect Tomorrow. Attend an Educational Estate-Planning Seminar

Get Started 863-222-7005

Chart of the Day: Evolution of the Market Sectors

Samuel A. Kiburz, Senior Vice President, Chief Investment Officer Nov 6, 2025
Bar graph from 1800 - 2025 showing how the biggest sector in the U.S. market has changed over time.

Contents

Today’s Chart of the Day from Goldman Sachs takes a look at how the biggest sector in the U.S. stock market has changed over time, from 1800 to present.
 
You can see at one point, from 1800-1850, that Finance and Real Estate was the largest sector in the market at 90%. Then from 1850-1915, Transport was the largest sector, at approximately 50%. (This timeframe encompassed the formation of the oldest stock market index, called the Dow Jones Transportation Index, which was the precursor to the current Dow Jones Industrial Average, which was formed in 1896.)
 
From 1915 to the mid-1960's, the Energy and Materials sector led the market, a period that marked both World Wars and the rebuilding that followed. Finally, today the top sector is Information Technology and Communications, at 45%, in what is called the “Information Revolution.”
 
As you can see, over the years, the market has become much more diverse, so the biggest sector now makes up a smaller piece of the pie.
 
Chart of the Day

About the Author

Samuel A. Kiburz, Senior Vice President, Chief Investment Officer
Samuel A. Kiburz, Senior Vice President, Chief Investment Officer

Samuel serves as Senior Vice President, Chief Investment Officer for the Crews family of banks. He manages the individual investment holdings of his clients, including individuals, families, foundations, and institutions throughout the State of Florida. Samuel has been involved in banking since 1996 and has more than 20 years experience working in wealth management.

Investments are not a deposit or other obligation of, or guaranteed by, the bank, are not FDIC insured, not insured by any federal government agency, and are subject to investment risks, including possible loss of principal.

Previous
Chart of the Day: Gold vs Hourly Wage

Subscribe to Our Blog

Sign up to receive email notifications of our blogs.