Next Week At A Glance

This story features BHP GROUP LIMITED, and other companies. For more info SHARE ANALYSIS: BHP

For a more comprehensive preview of next week's events, please refer to "The Monday Report", published each Monday morning. For all economic data release dates, ex-div dates and times and other relevant information, please refer to the FNArena Calendar.

By Greg Peel

Wall Street will enter next week safe in the knowledge the new Fed chair, due to take over early next year, is even less likely to start tapering QE early than the already reluctant incumbent. As to whether the entire FOMC, which will also rotate, shares Janet Yellen’s “just keep printing until the US economy is strong” attitude is another matter. The bulk of Fedspeak of late has suggested increasing support for tapering now rather than later, not because the US economy is strong but because the Fed balance sheet is becoming dangerously unwieldy.

And then there are those who believe that when the Fed eventually does start to taper, it will have nothing to do with unemployment statistics and everything to do with the fact QE3 has done no more than artificially pump up asset prices.

The minutes of the last Fed meeting are due out next week and despite last night’s soothing testimony, Wall Street will still be looking for any clues of a possible surprise December taper as Bernanke’s parting gift. Those aside, US economic data releases next week include housing market sentiment, housing starts, existing home sales, the Philly Fed manufacturing index and a flash estimate of the November manufacturing PMI.

China will also see a flash PMI next week, courtesy of HSBC, along with October property price data. Japan will release its October trade balance and the Bank of Japan will hold a policy meeting.

It’s a quiet week for Australian data, although the minutes of the last RBA meeting will be scrutinised for further clues as to whether 2.5% represents the bottom of the cycle or not.

It will not be a quiet week for local AGMs, although next week’s flood for the most part represents companies further down the market cap ladder. A notable exception is BHP Billiton ((BHP)), while Myer ((MYR)), David Jones ((DJS)), Sonic Health Care ((SHL)) and Virgin Australia ((VAH)) will all keep the market interested, among many more.
 

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