A week of mild trading started off with the indices closing low. The Dow Jones fell by 162 points, while S&P 500 dropped 0.31%, and the Nasdaq Composite decreased by 0.27%.

We expect similarly mild results throughout Tuesday, ahead of some key inflation data. Coming later this week are reports for Durable Goods Orders, Core Durable Goods orders, and CB Consumer Confidence. The last time these reports were issued, all of them were down, indicating a sluggish economy and timidity in consumer purchasing.

Americans are fearful about the economy, and that shows in the consumer buying numbers from last month. We expect to see low numbers again for these reports as inflation has only increased. Consumer confidence in the economy is likely just as low as it was last month or even lower. Once those reports hit this week, the stock market is likely to dip.

A Change from Last Week

What we saw last week for the stock market was that all three major indices hit record highs. The trading has slowed down this week, but it has also just started. If the economic data comes out better than expected, we could see increased trading and investors taking more risks.

Last week’s vigorous trading was partly due to major company earnings reports coming out, including those for Nike, FedEx, and Lululemon. This week, few major reports are set to be issued, and we anticipate a slower week all the way through.

The trading focus is likely to be centered on stocks that have done well over the past few months, like Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Nvidia. A few pharmaceutical and technology stocks will likely also make some big moves this week. As data trickles in today and tomorrow, this is an opportunity for investors to check in with stocks they have not looked at in a while and consider trades that may pay off a few months down the road.