- Monday August 16th 2010 – European Union Consumer Price Index (900 GMT)
The Consumer Price Index released by Eurostat is a measure of price movements by the comparison between the retail prices of a representative shopping basket of goods and services excluding the volatile components like food and energy. The CPI Core is a key indicator to measure inflation and changes in purchasing trends. The year over year level of .9 (reported last month), is relatively high when compared with the United States, but still below the 2% upper target the ECB is comfortable with. Any upward movement may hamper the easy monetary policy the ECB currently enjoys.
- Tuesday August 17th 2010 – EMU Zew Survey (900 GMT)
The Economic Sentiment published by the Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung measures the institutional investor sentiment, reflecting the difference between the share of investors that are optimistic and the share of analysts that are pessimistic. A positive number means that the share of optimists outweighs the share of pessimists. The Zew is similar to a confidence index and plays a strong role in determining how well the markets are perceived as performing. After a strong July rally in global markets, expectations are for a robust Zew, which might not jive with the current volatility the markets are experiencing in August.
- Tuesday August 17th 2010 – US Housing Starts (1230 GMT)
The Housing Starts released by the US Census Bureau, at the Department of Commerce is an indicator that tracks how many new single-family homes or buildings were constructed. For the survey, each house and each single apartment are counted as one housing start. The figures include all private and publicly owned units. It indicates movements of the US housing market. This is the first of the July housing numbers, which should be significant. After a robust 1st quarter, the housing market stumbled in May and June, and market participants believe that the removal and then return of the housing tax credit should create a better market during the summer months.
- Wednesday August 18th 2010 – Australia Wage Price Index (0300 GMT)
The Wage Price Index released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics is an indicator of labor cost inflation and of the tightness of labor markets. The Reserve Bank of Australia pays close attention to it when setting interest rates. The labor market in Australia continues to remain solid despite an increase in the lending rate to 4.5%. The prior week’s labor report showed a better than expected increase in overall jobs, which is bound to spill over into wage prices. Since wage prices are already growing at almost 3%, further dampening of growth will be needed to rain in wage inflation.
- Thursday August 19th 2010 – UK Retail Sales (830 GMT)
The retail Sales released by the National Statistics measures the total receipts of retail stores. Monthly percent changes reflect the rate of changes of such sales. Changes in Retail Sales are widely followed as an indicator of consumer spending. Similar to the United States, Retail Sales plays a large role in consumer spending and therefore a large portion of GDP. The consumer in the UK continues to keep the economy moving forward, with a solid increase in last month’s Retail Sales. Expectation are for continued growth in the Retail sector.
- Thursday August 19th 2010 – US Philly Fed Survey (1400 GMT)
The Philadelphia Fed Survey is a spread index of manufacturing conditions (movements of manufacturing) within the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. This survey, served as an indicator of manufacturing sector trends, is interrelated with the ISM manufacturing Index (Institute for Supply Management) and the index of industrial production. Manufacturing is the one cog in the US economy that continues to show bright spots. The Philly Fed survey will be an important gage to determine if manufacturing continues to perform as expected.
- Friday August 20th 2010 – Canada Consumer Price Index (1100 GMT)
The Consumer Price Index released by the Statistics Canada is a measure of price movements by the comparison between the retail prices of a representative shopping basket of goods and services. The purchase power of CAD is dragged down by inflation. The Bank of Canada aims at an inflation range (1%-3%). A high reading is seen as anticipatory of a rate hike and is positive (or bullish) for the CAD. Last month’s report showed a slight decrease month over month, which gave the Bank of Canada some room in there, ability to hold off on increasing rates. The BOC is currently at the beginning of a tightening cycle, and it is important for the central bank to see moderating inflation.