Key Dates

April 26 – Bank of Japan releases its monetary policy statement and outlook report for the year ahead. The current target rates of -0.1% for short-term lending and 0% for 10-year bonds are not expected to change, nor is the bank’s bond-buying program, as the country continues to grapple with its fourth wave of COVID-19 infections.

April 27 – Australian CPI data released.

April 27 – US consumer confidence data for April released.

April 28 – Canadian retail sales data for February released.

April 28 – US crude oil inventories data released.

April 28 – US Federal Reserve interest rate decision and press conference.

April 29 – US Q1 GDP data released. An upside surprise will increase pressure on the Fed to chart a quicker course toward rate normalization, especially if strong GDP data is paired with additional inflationary signals in April.

April 29 – US pending home sales data for March released.

April 29 – Chinese manufacturing PMI data for April released.

April 30 – Euro zone CPI data for April released. This will be one data point to monitor this week, particularly whether prices maintain their upward momentum from February (0.9%) and March (1.3%). The ECB has been warning of a temporary spike in inflation since earlier this year, but the severity and duration of the increase remains to be seen.

April 30 – Canadian monthly GDP data for February released.