War headlines continue to move markets—sometimes, a lot. But investors will also watch for movement on inflation and earnings in the days ahead. President Donald Trump over the weekend said he plans to hold a press conference with members of the military at the Oval Office Monday afternoon, as a self-imposed deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz looms.
This week, investors will also be tracking Friday’s Consumer Price Index report for March, a closely followed inflation reading. Economists expect that prices rose 0.9% from a month earlier, according to a consensus compiled by Wells Fargo, and 3.4% year-over-year. Prices rose 2.4% in February from a year earlier, the same as in January and in line with expectations; that report didn’t measure the effects of the conflict in Iran, but this one will. It follows Thursday’s release of Personal Consumption Expenditures data, another inflation measure seen as vital to the Federal Reserve’s planning of interest-rate policy; this one will reflect older information, from February. (Wells Fargo’s consensus is for an 0.4% month-on-month increase, and a 2.8% year-over-year-rise.) Traders generally expect the central bank to stay pat when it next meets at the end of the month.
Meanwhile, here come earnings reports! Several notable results are expected this week, including some that reflect consumer trends in Delta Air Lines and liquor maker Constellation Brands. (Companies are also watching war headlines closely, since the cost of fuel can have a big effect on their profits—and their prices.) Wall Street analysts broadly expect another quarter of double-digit earnings growth for the benchmark S&P 500.