A look at some of the major trade events and economic indicators to come this week:
TRADE LOOK
The Commerce Department delivers its latest overview of the country’s trade gap on Tuesday.
The gap between the value of goods and services the United States sells abroad and what it buys widened in January to a monthly record of $89.7 billion. The increase was driven by rising imports as energy costs surged. Economists predict the U.S. monthly trade deficit narrowed in February to $87.6 billion.
Trade balance, monthly, billions of dollars, seasonally adjusted:
Sep -81.2
Oct -67.0
Nov.-80.1
Dec. -82.0
Jan -89.7
Feb. (est.) -87.6
Source: FactSet
FOCUS ON THE FED
The Federal Reserve releases the minutes of last month’s meeting of central bank policymakers on Wednesday.
At the meeting, policymakers opted to raise the Fed’s benchmark short-term interest rate by a quarter point from near zero, where it had been since the start of the pandemic recession there. two years old. The Fed has also signaled up to six more rate hikes this year as it tries to rein in the worst inflation since the early 1980s.
JUST CHARGE IT
The Federal Reserve is providing new data on Thursday on the amount of credit Americans took out in February.
The tally, which excludes mortgages and other loans secured by real estate, is expected to show consumer borrowing increased by $20 billion. That would follow a $6.8 billion increase the previous month. That increase in January pushed total consumer credit to $4.44 trillion.
Consumer credit, monthly change, seasonally adjusted, billions of dollars:
September 26
October 13.9
39.3 November
22.4 December
6.8 Jan.
Feb. (est.) 20.0
Source: FactSet