Biz Buzz: A daily update on economic and business news
Archive: A comprehensive listing of Biz Buzz columns
Wall Street will put the economy under a microscope this week, as attention shifts away from inflation to concerns about a slowdown. This week, the Federal Reserve Board will address the state of the economy when it meets to discuss interest-rate policy. Meanwhile, several key reports on the housing market are due to be issued, which should shed light on how badly real estate is hurting.
Monday, September 18:
HOUSING INDEX: The National Association of Home Builders will release the latest results of its NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, which gauges the health of the residential real-estate market by surveying home builders. In August, the index fell to a reading of 32, down from 57 at the start of the year. Any reading below 50 means more home builders are pessimistic about the state of the housing market than are optimistic.
CEO SURVEY: The Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers from the nation's leading companies, will release the results of its third-quarter CEO economic outlook survey.
FINANCIAL SUMMIT: New Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson will be in Singapore to meet with Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China.
Tuesday, September 19:
WHOLESALE INFLATION: The Labor Department will reveal the August results of its closely watched producer price index, which measures inflation at the wholesale level. While overall PPI has risen erratically throughout the year, core PPI–which strips out volatile energy and food prices–has remained largely in check.
HOUSING STARTS: The Commerce Department will report on new-home construction trends in August. Many believe that housing starts continued to fall last month, as demand for new homes–and the median sales price on newly constructed properties–continue to drop.
EARNINGS TO WATCH: AutoZone and CKE Restaurants.
Wednesday, September 20:
FED MEETING: The Federal Reserve Board meets this week to discuss the nation's interest-rate policy. The consensus on Wall Street is that the Fed has won its war against inflation. In fact, only 29 percent of U.S. money managers surveyed recently said inflation was likely to rise in the next 12 months. That's down from 64 percent who thought so in April. As a result, many predict the Fed will leave interest rates alone at this meeting.
EARNINGS TO WATCH: Bed Bath & Beyond, Circuit City Stores, Darden Restaurants, and Morgan Stanley.
Thursday, September 21:
LEADING ECONOMIC INDICATORS: The Conference Board will release the latest results of its index of leading economic indicators, which attempts to gauge future economic activity based on a variety of factors.
EARNINGS TO WATCH: 3Com, A.G. Edwards, ConAgra Foods, FedEx, General Mills, Palm, and Rite Aid.
Friday, September 22:
PRESIDENTIAL VISIT: President Bush will host Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf for a meeting at the White House.
