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.)
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