The major U.S. indexes got the week off to a mixed start, but stock futures this morning were suggesting that today’s session would have a positive open. In overnight trading, markets in Asia gained ground, with Japan’s Nikkei Index continuing to rebound, rising 3.5%. Meanwhile, stocks in Europe are mostly in the green. Oil prices have moved lower, with West Texas Intermediate down about 0.3%, to around $79.80 a barrel.
Earnings reporting season is rapidly winding down, though there are a few big names reporting this week, including Cisco (CSCO), Walmart (WMT), and Applied Materials (AMAT).
Otherwise, investors will be poring through another round of inflation data this week. This morning, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its Producer Price Index (PPI) for July. The reading, which measures the change in the price of goods sold by manufacturers, showed a month-over-month increase of 0.1%. This was slightly better than consensus expectations of 0.2%, and the 0.2% reported for June. On a 12-month basis, the index was up 2.2%, compared to a 2.7% increase for the year through June.
On Wednesday, we’ll get the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for July. Analysts are projecting a 0.2% increase on the month-to-month basis, versus a 0.1% decline in June. On a 12-month basis, estimates were calling for a gain of 3.0%, matching the advance for June.
Thursday brings July retail sales figures from the Census Bureau. Forecasts are pointing to a month-over-month increase of 0.4%, versus a flat reading in June. The outlook excluding automobiles is a bit less rosy, with estimates calling for a monthly increase of 0.1%, down from 0.4%. That same day, we’ll also get initial jobless claims from the Department of Labor. Analysts foresee an increase of 2,000 compared to the week before, to 235,000 claims.
The week wraps up with the latest news on the homebuilding market. Wall Street is calling for the Census Bureau to report a dip in housing starts to 1.34 million in July, versus 1.353 million the month before. Meanwhile, building permits (a more forward-looking metric) are expected to slip to 1.430 million, down from 1.454 million.
Summing up Monday’s moves for the major U.S. indexes, the Dow Jones Industrials lost 140 points, or 0.4%, the S&P 500 was flat, gaining a fraction of a point, and the tech-focused NASDAQ advanced 35 points (0.2%). – Mario Ferro
At the time of this article’s writing, the author did not have positions in any of the companies mentioned.
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