What will drive the markets this week?
Oil prices initially experienced a brief sell-off before recovering and ultimately gaining more than $1 per barrel on Friday. The renewed optimism around demand from China, the top oil importer, helped drive prices higher, resulting in an overall gain for the week.
The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 47 countries, rose by 1.47% on Friday and is up by 5.8% for the year.
This week, the focus will be on the U.S. labor market as several important reports are set to be released. On Wednesday, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report will be published, providing insight into job vacancies and turnover rates. ADP’s National Employment Report, which tracks private sector payrolls, will also be released on the same day.
On Friday, the Labor Department will issue the nonfarm payrolls report for February, which will shed light on the state of the overall job market in the United States.
Furthermore, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will appear before Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday for his semiannual testimony on monetary policy. President Biden is scheduled to unveil his budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year to Congress on Thursday.
Finally, Apple, the world’s most valuable company by market capitalization, will hold its annual shareholders’ meeting virtually on Friday. During this meeting, shareholders will vote on various proposals, including the re-election of the board of directors and executive pay approval.
Events expected to influence financial markets in the week
Monday, March 6
- Trip.com (TCOM), Ciena Corp. (CIEN), and Nutanix Inc. (NTNX) report earnings
- Factory Orders (Jan)
Tuesday, March 7
- Sea Limited (SEA), CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD), Dick’s Sporting Goods (DKS), Casey’s General Stores (CASY), Thor Industries (THO), and Manchester United Ltd. (MANU) report earnings
- Day 1 of Fed Chair Powell’s Congressional Testimony
- IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism Index
- Wholesale Inventories (Jan)
Wednesday, March 8
- Petrobras (PBR), Woodside Energy Group (WDS), Prudential Public Limited Co. (PUK), Brown Forman Corp. (BF.A), KE Holdings Inc. (BEKE), and Campbell Soup Company (CPB) report earnings
- JOLTS Report (Jan)
- U.S. Imports and Exports (Jan)
- ADP National Employment Report (Feb)
- Day 2 of Fed Chair Powell’s Congressional Testimony
- China Inflation Rate (Feb)
Thursday, March 9
- Oracle Corporation (ORCL), JD.com (JD), Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (WPM), DocuSign (DOCU), The Toro Company (TTC), BJ’s Wholesale Club (BJ), Vail Resorts Inc. (MTN), The Gap Inc. (GPS), and National Beverage Corp. (FIZZ) report earnings
- Challenger Job Cuts (Feb)
- Bank of Japan (BoJ) Interest Rate Decision
- President Biden’s Budget Proposal to Congress
Friday, March 10
- Embraer S.A. (ERJ) reports earnings
- Apple Shareholders’ Meeting
- Nonfarm Payrolls Report (Feb)
- U.S. Government Budget Balance (Feb)