Weekly look ahead

(commenter Paul Gutches: there is a message for you at the end of this post)

This coming week will doubtless see many commentators breathlessly discussing the possibility of the Dow Index reaching 12,000 -- a pychologically important milestone for some. Hopefully we won't lose sight of the many reports and earnings announcements coming out this week.

This week we will see significant news on inflation (expected to be tepid), housing (expected to settle down but not drop, and the leading indicators (expected to be strong). The inflation numbers on Tuesday and Wednesday (PPI and CPI) probably have the most long term effect. (see my inflation articles in the sector overview area here)

For short-term effect look to earnings. Wednesday will see a release from Finance Wonk Portfolio holding Apple. This week will also have released from IBM, Google, Yahoo, Coca-Cola, and a slew of other big names as we plow full force into earnings season. We will find out whether corporate earnings will have their 13th straight quarter of double digit percent gains. The analysts think we will.

(Paul - you raise interesting questions in your comments. The main sources of the data you're looking for would be the "Venture Expert" and "Venture Economics" databases by Thompson Financial and Dow Jones. Let's talk more. You can email me through this link or the contact link at the top of the right-hand info column. )