The Week Ahead...

The housing sector has been giving mixed signals recently with sales and prices sluggish but last week's housing starts showing a rebound. This week's key updates on housing are existing and new home sales which could indicate whether the current average trajectory picks up or not. Globally, price inflation has softened, leading central banks to cut back on aggressive language on reducing balance sheets. This week's CPI report may influence market views on when the Fed next raises policy rates as inflation remains well below target of 2 percent.