Wednesday brought Durable Goods Orders figures. New orders for U.S.-made capital goods and shipments unexpectedly fell in May, but upward revisions to data for the prior month pointed to moderate growth in business spending on equipment in the second quarter. The Commerce Department said orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, slipped 0.2 percent last month. April data was revised to show the so-called core capital goods orders surging 2.3 percent instead of the previously reported 1.0 percent rise. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast core capital goods orders gaining 0.5 percent last month.
Thursday was marked by GDP data. Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.0 percent in the first quarter of 2018 according to the "third" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the fourth quarter, real GDP increased 2.9 percent. In the second estimate, the increase in real GDP was 2.2 percent. With this third estimate for the first quarter, the general picture of economic growth remains the same; private inventory investment and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) were revised down.
On Friday Consumer Sentiment data was released. Consumer sentiment jumped at the beginning of June, moving opposite of expectations and heading back toward levels seen earlier this year. The University of Michigan's Friday report on consumer attitudes about the economy hit 99.3 in a preliminary June reading, higher than the 98.3 expected by a survey of Reuters economists. The index was more than a point above May's reading of 98 and rose to its highest level since hitting 101.4 in March.
Figures to watch:
ISM Manufacturing PMI (Monday 15:00)
ADP Non-Farm Employment Change (Thursday 13:15)
ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI (Thursday 15:00)
FOMC Meeting Minutes (Thursday 19:00)
Non-Farm Employment Change/Unemployment Rate (Friday 13:30)