Wall Street week ahead: Fed minutes, unemployment data, consumer sentiment update
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street has a busy week ahead with a mix of economic updates and details about the Federal Reserve's decision to raise interest rates at its most recent meeting.
The updates include fresh data on the health of the services sector, unemployment and consumer sentiment. Those reports can help give investors and economists more insight into how businesses and households are adapting to persistently high inflation. The minutes from the Fed's last meeting will also give Wall Street more details about the central bank's decision-making process for interest rate policy.
On Monday, the Institute for Supply Management will releases its monthly service sector index for September. The sector makes up the bulk of U.S. economic activity, and the report focuses on whether it is expanding.
On Wednesday, Wall Street will get more details on the decision-making process behind the Fed's interest rate increase at its previous meeting. The minutes from that meeting could provide insight into what the central bank thinks about inflation and the job market and how they factor into interest rate policy.
On Thursday, Wall Street will get its weekly update on unemployment claims, which remain historically low. They are a proxy for layoffs, and economists watch them because they can be a sign of where the job market is headed.
On Friday, the University of Michigan releases its consumer sentiment survey for October. It measures how consumers feel about the economy. The September survey showed that households are worried about higher fuel prices and stubbornly high inflation.
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