THE WEEK AHEAD

You could call it the week ahead, but it really has the look of a Fed week as some of the big guns, past and present, speak. This should tell you something. No doubt some will offer these speaking engagements, like sporting events, were booked in advance.

Maybe and maybe not? One interpretation is they are panicking because they know they're behind the curve. It also raises the question about a deal being cut to bailout certain economies. One must recall these are bureaucrats no more immune from irrational acts than anyone else.

The upcoming week.www.marketwatch.com/story/fed-speakers-data-to-take-over-as-earnings-slow-to-trickle-2016-05-21

With earnings season all but over, investors will turn their full attention to economic data and how Fed members are parsing that data in their decision to raise rates. On the heels of Fed minutes that raised the possibility of a June rate hike, the raft of Fed speakers this week will have particular influence on markets, said John Canally, chief economic strategist for LPL Financial, in an interview.

“They’re all going to be pushing for a hike, and we might get more hawkish talk,” Canally said.
On Monday, nonvoting San Francisco Fed President John Williams will speak about monetary policy in New York, and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, a hawkish-leaning voting member, will deliver a speech in Beijing. Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker, a hawkish-leaning but nonvoting member, is also scheduled to speak on Monday and Wednesday.

On Wednesday, nonvoting members Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari and Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan also are scheduled to speak. Bullard speaks again on Thursday in Singapore, and Fed Gov. Jerome Powell is set to speak about the economy in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. Then, on Friday, Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen is scheduled to appear at Harvard University on Friday, along with former chairman Ben Bernanke.

As far as what data will be of interest, Canally said he’ll be looking at Markit purchasing manager’s index data for May on Monday for signs that the manufacturing sector is stabilizing. In that vein, Thursday is also a big data day with the April durable goods report.
Canally, however, doesn’t see a June hike as likely because Britain’s national referendum on whether to leave the European Union, or the so-called Brexit, won’t come until June 23, a week after the Fed’s next scheduled policy meeting.