Despite being a slow period for earnings reports, next week will see quarterly results from three bellwethers: electronics retailer Best Buy Co. (BBY), business-software maker Oracle Corp. (ORCL) and shipping giant FedEx Corp. (FDX).

In addition, economic reports will detail wholesale and retail inflation as well as housing starts in August.

President Barack Obama will address the financial crisis in a Monday speech in New York, exactly a year after the collapse of investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (LEMHQ).

 
   FedEx Results To Be Better Than Expected

FedEx on Friday put its fiscal first-quarter earnings above its previously dour forecast and issued an upbeat outlook for the current quarter, the latest evidence that the steep downturn in the shipping sector has at least stabilized. FedEx reports Thursday.

Analysts expect Oracle, which is close to completing a $7.38 billion deal to buy Sun Microsystems Inc. (JAVA), to post slight higher earnings but lower revenue than a year earlier. In June, Oracle, which reports Wednesday, issued a better than expected forecast for its fiscal first quarter.

Best Buy on Tuesday is likely to post an earnings decline of about 15% lower despite revenue growth of about 10% for its fiscal second quarter. In June, the nation's largest consumer electronics chain by sales gave a cautious outlook for the rest of the year because of reduced consumer spending.

 
   Producer Prices Likely Up In August

Economists are predicting an increase of 0.8% in August producer prices after a bigger than expected drop in July, while consumer prices likely rose 0.1%, the same as the month before. The government releases the Producer Price Index, which measures wholesale inflation, on Tuesday and the Consumer Price Index, a measure of retail inflation, on Wednesday.

The government also will report on August retail sales and July business inventories Tuesday. Data on industrial production in that month are due Wednesday. A day later, statistics on August building permits and housing starts are likely to show an increase in both, although they remain at very low levels. The New York and Philadelphia Feds report on regional manufacturing conditions Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.

Among appearances by Federal Reserve officials: Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker speaks Monday in Charlotte and San Francisco Fed President Janet Yellen speaks Monday in San Francisco.

 
   Obama To Discuss Financial Crisis In NYC

President Barack Obama will deliver what the White House is calling a major speech on the financial crisis Monday in New York. The midday address comes as the administration begins its drive to revamp U.S. financial regulations by the end of the year and prepares for the Group of 20 summit in Pittsburgh, where world leaders will ponder how to avoid a relapse of the financial crisis.

 
   President To Decide On Tax On Chinese Tires

President Obama has until Thursday to decide whether to slap punitive taxes on Chinese tires. After a complaint by the United Steelworkers Union, which argued cheap imports were killing domestic jobs, the U.S. International Trade Commission recommended that Chinese tires for passenger cars and light trucks should face additional import tariffs for the next three years. The commission has suggested the tax should be 55% in the first year, 45% in the second year and 35% in the third year, then it could be eliminated. Currently, all imported tires are taxed at 3% to 4%.

 
   Chrysler To Decide On Auto Leasing

Chrysler Group LLC plans to decide next week when to resume auto leasing, according to a dealer briefed on the plans. The Detroit auto maker was forced out of the business more than a year ago and now relies on GMAC Inc. for its dealer financing. Chrysler, which merged most of its assets with Italian auto maker Fiat SpA (FIATY), is seeking to revive its business after coming out of a federally funded bankruptcy process in June.

 
   New GM Ads Offer Money-Back Guarantee

General Motors Co. is preparing to launch a new "May The Best Car Win" advertising campaign Monday, offering buyers a 60-day, money-back guarantee on its products through November, according to a person familiar with the plan. GM will stage events across the country that allow people to test the company's claims about its vehicles, this person said. The campaign is designed to win the trust of U.S. car buyers after the company's collapse earlier this year, which led to a June 1 bankruptcy filing and a $50 billion bailout from the U.S. government.

 
   U.S. Senate Finance Group Closer To Health-Care Bill

Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., said Friday a bipartisan negotiating group is "starting to reach closure" on health-care legislation, indicating he would end negotiations and move forward on a bill as soon as Monday. Baucus has led negotiations for months among a bipartisan group of six members of the Finance Committee.

Three House of Representatives committees and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee have approved health-care bills. But the finance panel's deliberations are seen as key to President Obama's goal of passing legislation this year, because of the possibility for attracting some Republican support in the committee for the measure.

 
   Obama Will Speak To AFL-CIO Conference

President Obama will speak Tuesday to the AFL-CIO during its conference, from Sunday through Thursday in Pittsburgh. During the meeting, Richard Trumka, a third-generation coal miner, is expected to assume the helm of the 11 million-member labor organization. He aims to woo younger workers, including freelancers and temporary workers, who don't see organized labor as relevant, by pushing for causes that more directly affect them, such as affordable college education, protection for telecommuters and portable health care.


 Conferences

Among the significant conferences next week are the Deutsche Bank Securities Technology Conference from Monday through Wednesday in San Francisco, Morgan Stanley Global Healthcare Conference on Monday and Tuesday in New York, Barclays Capital Global Financial Services Conference on Tuesday and Wednesday in New York, JP Morgan Diversified Industries Conference on Tuesday and Wednesday in New York, and Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference from Tuesday through Thursday in New York.

-By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357; kathy.shwiff@dowjones.com

(Dow Jones Newswires staff contributed to this report.)