Fed Minutes and Key Data Releases Dominate This Week's Economic Calendar

This week's economic calendar is packed with key data releases that could influence market expectations for the Federal Reserve's next move. The July FOMC meeting minutes, scheduled to be released on Wednesday, will provide insight into how Fed officials were assessing inflation before last week's data was available.

The inflation rate cooled to 2.5% year-over-year in July, its lowest since March 2021. However, the comparable measure of personal consumption expenditures (PCE) rose 4.4%. The discrepancy may influence the Fed's decision-making process on interest rates.

This week also sees the release of weekly unemployment insurance claims, which climbed to 209,000 in the week ended August 7. Business surveys from the NY and Philly Federal Reserve banks are expected to show a continued pickup in activity. The July industrial production data will also be released, following last month's report showing total output up just 1.1% year-over-year.