The Week Ahead: Holiday-Shortened Week Brings Fed Minutes

• FOMC will release January meeting minutes on Wednesday, Feb. 18, alongside delayed housing starts, building permits, durable goods orders, and retail/wholesale inventories
• Friday's calendar includes the critical PCE and core PCE index for December, GDP update, S&P flash manufacturing and services PMIs for February, plus delayed new home sales reports for November and December
• Major earnings reports scheduled from Walmart, Palo Alto Networks, Newmont, Kinross Gold, Carvana, DoorDash, Etsy, Live Nation, and Wayfair

Summary

Week Overview:

U.S. markets will be closed Monday, February 16, for Presidents' Day, but the remainder of the week features significant economic data releases and corporate earnings.

Key Economic Reports:

• Tuesday (Feb. 17): Empire State Manufacturing Survey
• Wednesday (Feb. 18): Delayed housing starts and building permits (November), December building permits, durable goods orders, advanced U.S. trade balance, retail/wholesale inventories, and January FOMC meeting minutes
• Thursday (Feb. 19): Weekly jobless claims, U.S. trade deficit update, Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey, pending home sales, and remarks from Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari
• Friday (Feb. 20): Personal income/spending, GDP update, December and November new home sales, December PCE index and core PCE (key inflation indicators), February S&P Flash Manufacturing and Services PMIs, and consumer sentiment data

Earnings Releases:

Notable companies reporting include Walmart (WMT), Palo Alto Networks (PANW), gold miners Newmont (NEM) and Kinross Gold (KGC), Carvana (CVNA), Caesars Entertainment (CZR), DoorDash (DASH), Dropbox (DBX), Etsy (ETSY), Live Nation (LYV), Lemonade (LMND), Cinemark (CNK), Molson Coors (TAP), and Wayfair (W).

Market Implications:

The week's focus centers on the PCE index—the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge—and FOMC minutes, which will provide insights into monetary policy direction. Multiple delayed economic reports will offer a comprehensive view of housing, manufacturing, and consumer activity. The combination of major retailer earnings (Walmart) and economic data could significantly influence market sentiment heading into month-end.