What will drive the markets this week?
It was a good opening week for global equities markets last week as a jobs report in the US raised investors’ sentiments about inflation going down. Analysts speculated that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes are having their intended effect and the Fed was likely to go slow on interest rates this year. This sent all major indices in the US to gains.
In Europe, equities tracked Wall Street gains as investors in the Eurozone digested news on headline inflation, which includes food and energy costs, that came in at 9.2% year-on-year in December. It follows November’s headline inflation rate of 10.1%, which represented the first slight contraction in prices since June 2021.
This week, market watchers can expect the latest consumer inflation figures, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), will release the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for December on Thursday. Corporate earnings season kicks off next week, with earnings reports expected from big banks and the financial sector. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, and BlackRock are scheduled to report on Friday. Other major companies, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, UnitedHealth Group, and Delta Air Lines will also report earnings next week. The University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index (MCSI) will provide an update on consumer confidence on Friday.
Events expected to influence financial markets in the week
Monday, January 9
- Jefferies Financial Group (JEF), Commercial Metals Company (CMC), Acuity Brands (AYI), and PriceSmart Inc. (PSMT) report earnings
- Consumer Inflation Expectations (Dec)
Tuesday, January 10
- Albertsons Companies (ACI) and Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) report earnings
- NFIB Business Optimism Index (Dec)
- IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism Index (Jan)
- Wholesale Inventories (Nov)
Wednesday, January 11
- Infosys Limited (INFY), Wipro Limited (WIT), and Shaw Communications Inc. (SJR) report earnings
- China Inflation Rate (Dec)
Thursday, January 12
- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM) and Washington Federal Inc. (WAFD) report earnings
- CPI Inflation Rate (Dec)
Friday, January 13
- UnitedHealth Group (UNH), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America (BAC), Wells Fargo (WFC), BlackRock (BLK), Citigroup (C), Bank of New York Mellon (BK), First Republic Bank (FRC), and Delta Air Lines (DAL) report earnings
- Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index - Preliminary Reading (Jan)
- U.K. Gross Domestic Product (MoM, Nov)