Global Economy Week Ahead: Eurozone Industrial Production, U.K. and U.S. Inflation

The week ahead will feature an early look at how the eurozone's economic momentum is holding up in the third quarter, while consumer price data from the U.K. and U.S. will show if those countries' central banks are getting any closer to their inflation targets.

TUESDAY: Analysts polled by The Wall Street Journal expect U.K. consumer-price inflation to come in at 2.8% in August, slightly below May's peak of 2.9% but well above the Bank of England's 2% target. Annual price growth was unchanged at 2.6% in July, the Office for National Statistics said.

WEDNESDAY: The release of the first hard data on eurozone economic output in the third quarter comes in the form of industrial production figures from Eurostat, which are expected to show modest increases. That would be in line with survey evidence that suggests the economy is set to slow slightly in the second half of the year from a stronger-than-expected start to 2017.

In the U.K., the Office for National Statistics releases data on pay, with regular wages expected to have grown a subdued 2.2% in the three months through July, despite the unemployment rate standing at a more than four-decade low.

THURSDAY: The U.S. Labor Department releases consumer-price index figures for August. In July, inflation in the U.S. remained subdued, increasing 0.1% from a month earlier. Inflation has stayed stubbornly weak in recent months, even as unemployment has been historically low. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal see some pickup in August, forecasting CPI grew 0.4% in August, while core prices increased 0.2%.

FRIDAY: Economists will get the latest pulse on U.S. consumer spending when the Commerce Department releases August retail sales. Sales at retailers and restaurants rose 0.6% in July from a month earlier, the biggest increase since December. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal see a slowdown for August, with retail sales forecast to rise 0.1%.

The European Central Bank has made it clear the pace at which eurozone wages are rising will have to pick up significantly if it is to meet its inflation target. Pay figures for the second quarter from Eurostat are expected to show an acceleration, but not one strong enough to assure the ECB of success. Trade figures for July, released at the same time, will be scrutinized for any signs that the euro's recent strength is hitting the currency area's exports.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 10, 2017 15:14 ET (19:14 GMT)