As more data filters out this week, we’ll have more insight into the economy’s performance in 2020, WSJ reports.
Monday:
China’s Consumer Prices:
- Expected to remain the same from December 2019 to December 2020.
- Prices dropped in November as increased supply led to a pullback in pork prices.
- China’s consumer price-index “likely fell 0.8% on year, compared with a 1.5% drop in November, as the price of thermal coal picked up.”
Wednesday:
U.S. Consumer Prices:
- Expected to have moderately increased in December.
- Inflation has been mild during the pandemic.
- Economists expect weak demand for services and some goods to pick up speed later this year.
Thursday:
China’s Exports:
- Expected to increase 12.8% from a year earlier in December.
- It’s not as high as November’s 21.1% surge, as increasing U.S. and European Covid-19 cases put pressure on demand for Chinese goods.
- December import growth likely expanded, giving a stable trade surplus of $72 billion.
Germany’s GDP Estimate:
- It will be the first large economy to release an official estimate for 2020.
- It’s likely to be the first contraction since 2009 — roughly the same “magnitude as in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, when GDP fell 5%.”
U.S. Jobless Claims:
- Expected to remain elevated.
- More Covid-19 cases and restrictions on businesses creating high levels of layoffs.
Friday:
U.S. Retail Sales:
- Fell in October and November, indiciating consumer pullback amid a Covid-19 surge, limited fiscal support and disappointing job gains.
- The report will describe the “severity of the broader economic slowdown at the end of the year.”
U.S. Industrial Production:
- Expected to increase in December, reflecting another month of gains.
- Manufacturing has been a positive as companies adapt to the pandemic.
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