Week Ahead: GDP, Housing and Consumer Sentiment

A slew of economic data will be released next week, including reports on GDP, housing and consumer sentiment. Every piece of data is significant these days as the “data-dependent” Federal Reserve mulls the timing of the first interest rate hike in nearly a decade.

The second estimate for the gross domestic product during the first quarter is out Wednesday and analysts believe the figure should be revised upward, although the report will still indicate that economic growth contracted during the first three months of the year.

“GDP should be revised up 0.6 points, to a token 0.1% dip. Construction, medical-care consumption, and imports and exports of goods are responsible for the upward revision,” analysts at IHS Global Insight wrote in a note.

Economists have blamed the soft patch on another unusually severe winter that kept consumers at home, a strong dollar that cut into exports and a West Coast dock strike that disrupted supply chains. The hope is that the second quarter will rebound strongly.

A report on existing home sales is out Monday and data on new home sales is out Tuesday. Both figures have broad implications for the wider economy because the housing industry impacts lenders, construction workers and retail.

A report on durable goods orders is out Tuesday; a report on personal income and outlays is out Thursday; and the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index is out Friday.