Investing.com - In the week ahead, investors will focus on U.S. economic reports to gauge if the world's largest economy is strong enough to withstand a hike in interest rates in the coming months, with Friday’s nonfarm payrolls data in the spotlight.
Elsewhere, in China, market players will be looking out for data on the country's manufacturing sector, amid ongoing concerns over the health of the world's second biggest economy.
Meanwhile, in the U.K., traders will be awaiting reports on activity in the manufacturing and construction sectors for further indications on the continued effect that the Brexit decision is having on the economy.
In addition, Thursday’s euro zone inflation data will be closely watched amid lingering worries over deflationary threats in the single currency region.
Market players will also be looking to Wednesday’s data on Canada's gross domestic product.
Ahead of the coming week, Investing.com has compiled a list of the five biggest events on the economic calendar that are most likely to affect the markets.
1. U.S. jobs report for August
The U.S. Labor Department will release its August nonfarm payrolls report at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT) on Friday.
The consensus forecast is that the data will show jobs growth of 180,000, following an increase of 255,000 in July, the unemployment rate is forecast to dip 0.1% to 4.8%, whileaverage hourly earnings are expected to rise 0.2% after gaining 0.3% a month earlier.
An upbeat employment report will point to an improving economy and support the case for higher interest rates in the coming months, while a weak report would add to uncertainty over the economic outlook and push prospects of tighter monetary policy further off the table.
Besides the employment report, the U.S. is to produce data on personal spending andincome, core PCE prices, consumer confidence, pending home sales, and factory orders in the week ahead. There is also ISM data on manufacturing sector activity.
2. Chinese manufacturing data
The China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing is to release data on August manufacturing sector activity at 01:00GMT on Thursday (9:00PM ET Wednesday), followed by the Caixin manufacturing index at 01:45GMT (9:45PM ET).
The official China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index is forecast to remain unchanged at 49.9 this month, while the Caixin survey is expected to slip to 50.2 from 50.6 in the preceding month.
Anything above 50.0 signals expansion, while readings below 50.0 indicate industry contraction.
3. U.K. August PMI's
The U.K. will release readings on August manufacturing sector activity on Thursday, followed by a report on the construction sector on Friday.
The manufacturing PMI is forecast to inch up to 49.0 from 48.2 a month earlier, whileconstruction activity is expected to improve slightly to 46.1 from 45.9.
The Bank of England cut interest rates to a record-low 0.25% and launched fresh easing measures earlier in August in a bid to buffer the economy from a downturn following the Brexit vote.
Economic activity in the U.K. is expected to slow down sharply in the second half of the year as businesses face uncertainty over the country’s future direction in wake of the U.K.'s vote to exit the European Union.
4. Euro zone flash August inflation figures
The euro zone will publish flash inflation figures for August at 09:00GMT (5:00AM ET) Wednesday. The consensus forecast is that the report will show consumer prices inched up 0.3%, compared to a rise of 0.2% in July, while core prices are expected to gain 0.9%, unchanged from the prior month.
Slow growth and virtually non-existent inflation will force the European Central Bank to extend and expand the scope of its asset purchase program at its policy meeting later this month, according to a recent Reuters poll of economists.
5. Canadian growth data
Canada is to release GDP figures at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT) Wednesday. The data is expected to show that the economy expanded 0.5% in June, after shrinking 0.6% a month earlier.
