This week's initial jobless claims data is for the week ending January 22 and that includes the Martin Luther King Jr. day holiday, so it could skew the numbers. Powell yesterday called recent jobs growth 'remarkable' but the US has averaged only 386K jobs in the past four months and 199K in December. The consensus on claims is 260K.
At the same time as that release we get December durable goods, which are expected down 0.5%. On that front, I'm listening less to the data than corporate commentary. Appliance manufacturer Whirlpool reported late yesterday and forecast 5-6% sales growth this year. We've also heard from both Steel Dynamics and Alcoa who are both bullish on demand.
For more, see the economic calendar.
