Investors are hopeful that the Manufacturing PMI and Services PMI will be positive on Tuesday as they trade today.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 0.35%. The other major market indices are up as well, with the S&P 500 up 0.47%. The Nasdaq Composite also posted positive numbers so far today, with that index showing a gain of 0.55%.

Obviously, none of these are major gains, but starting off the week on a positive note should help build momentum and increase consumer confidence in the market heading forward.

For Tuesday, two major economic reports are set to be released. The first is the Manufacturing PMI, or Purchasing Manager’s Index. This will indicate economic movement in the area of manufacturing, giving some indication of where inflation and consumer confidence are at and where they are moving.

The next one is Services PMI, which denotes activity in the area of business services. Traders and economic analysts will both be watching these indicators to see what inflation is doing and if the economy is getting better or worse.

What to Expect from These Reports

Even though inflation is increasing, there are other areas of the US economy where things are looking up. Durable goods purchases, consumer confidence, and unemployment claims have been mildly positive this year, and similar data is expected from Tuesday’s PMI reports.

The Manufacturing and Services PMI numbers should be slightly better for this report than they were last time, if expectations hold. Output should improve throughout the year as well, according to a number of firms.

US Manufacturing PMI should come in around 51.9 for the month of March, which is down slightly from the previously predicted 52.5. Recent economic and inflation data has suggested that overly positive expectations should be muted, and more realistic and lower predictions are going to be more accurate.