Next Week Economic News

The Federal Reserve's rate-making body, the Federal Open Market Committee, will hold a two-day meeting to decide interest-rate policy for the next few months. The decision will come Wednesday afternoon.

The S&P/Case-Shiller Index, due Tuesday. This measures home-price changes in 20 major markets. It's likely to show more signs that the housing market has bottomed. But not much more.

The final University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for April, due Friday, is expected to hit 71. That would be up from 69.6 in an earlier estimate.

First-quarter gross domestic product, due Friday. Sounds boring, but GDP is how we measure the economy. And this report is likely to end the argument over whether the recovery is real.

About Earnings,
Monday: While Big Oil is the focus of the week, the big report Monday will come from Dow component Caterpillar (CAT). Caterpillar has been boosting guidance, citing the emerging global recovery.

Tuesday: Dow components 3M (MMM) and DuPont (DD) are due in the morning, with Broadcom (BRCM), which makes communications chips, after the close.

Wednesday: Honda reports early in the day. Royal Dutch Shell and Cabot Oil & Gas (COG) are among the energy companies reporting. Outside of energy are several media reports: Comcast (CMCSA) , Meredith (MDP) (publisher of Better Homes & Gardens) and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSO).

Thursday: This is a huge day with more than 550 companies reporting.
Exxon Mobil reports before the open.Energy companies also reporting include Apache (APA), ConocoPhillips, independent refiner Tesoro (TSO), Occidental Petroleum (OXY), Newpark Resources (NR) and Noble Energy (NBL).

Friday: Chevron, the second-largest U.S.-based oil company, reports before the open. The earnings estimate is $1.93 a share, up 168% from a year. Revenue is expected to jump 47% to $53.3 billion. James River Coal (JRCC) reports as well.

Also reporting will be two big consumer stocks: homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI) and Newell Rubbermaid (NWL).