Monday's Market Minute: Watching Central Bank Activity

Let’s get ahead of some of the data coming our way this busy week. First off, we have financial markets focused on the central bank activity with the Bank of Japan (BOJ), the Bank of Canada (BOC), and the European Central Bank (ECB) all expected to leave rates unchanged in continuation of the “wait and see, lawmakers it’s time for you to do your part” stance they’ve adopted.

The BOC is expected to pull back some of their emergency stimulus efforts, a sign things have improved some, and the BOJ is expected to update forecasts and soften the economic assessment. In the U.S., we have another wave of housing data – seems like the third week in a row with focus on housing – GDP, and some inflation data. Later in the week, we have Personal Income and Spending.

In terms of companies reporting quarterly results, we have Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT), Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB), and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) on the tech front. We also have 3M Co (NYSE: MMM), Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE), and some closely watched energy names like Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) and Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX). In addition, markets continue to wait for something definitive out of Washington, with lawmakers still unwilling to put together a mutually acceptable stimulus package.

Rates here in the U.S. are inching higher, Gold remains balanced around $1900, and the U.S. Dollar is holding dangerously close to year-lows. So no matter what you trade this week, we have potential to see some good market movement.

Photo by Chris Li on Unsplash