gold, page-29475

A bit of a crunch week for US data.... the odds on a Fed rate hike in June have slipped....

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4073071-week-ahead-5-things-watch-economic-calendar

Key U.S. economic data in the week ahead could provide further evidence if the world's largest economy is strong enough to withstand a rate hike as early as next month, with the Empire State and Philly Fed manufacturing surveys in focus.

The New York Federal Reserve Bank is to publish the Empire State manufacturing survey for May at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT) on Monday, amid expectations for a modest improvement to 7.0 from 5.2 in April.
That is followed by the Philly Fed's own manufacturing survey due at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT) Thursday. Market analysts expect the index to tick down to 19.8 in May from 22.0 in the preceding month.
Besides the manufacturing surveys, this week's calendar also features U.S. data on building permits, housing starts, industrial production and weekly jobless claims.
Markets are currently pricing in around a 70% chance of a rate hike in June in the wake of last week's disappointing U.S. retail sales and inflation reports, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
Earnings from the likes of retailers such as Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT), Target (NYSE:TGT), Home Depot (NYSE:HD), Gap (NYSE:GPS) and TJX (NYSE:TJX) are also on the radar this week, especially in light of last week's downbeat results from department store retailers like Macy's (NYSE:M) and Nordstrom (NYSE:JWN).