This Week: Consumer price index, Deere & Co. earnings, retail sales

A look at some of the key business events and economic indicators upcoming this week.

Eye on inflation

The Labor Department issues its latest report on inflation at the consumer level Wednesday.

Economists expect the consumer price index rose 2.9% last month, matching the year-over-year increase in December. The annual rate of inflation has been mostly inching higher since October. That has raised warning flags for the Federal Reserve, which cut interest rates three times in 2024, but has signaled that it will proceed cautiously in 2025.

Consumer price index, annual percent change, not seasonally adjusted:

Aug. 2.5

Sept. 2.4

Oct. 2.6

Nov. 2.8

Dec. 2.9

Jan. (est.) 2.9

Source: FactSet

Dig this

Deere & Co. delivers its latest quarterly report card Thursday.

Wall Street predicts the company will report lower fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue versus the same quarter last year. The maker of tractors and agricultural equipment has been struggling with declining sales, which the company has attributed to “significant market challenges.”

Retail review

The Commerce Department releases its monthly snapshot of U.S. retail sales Friday.

Analysts forecast that retail sales slipped 0.1% in January. That would be the first monthly decline since August. Retail sales rose 0.5% in December. Consumers have generally kept spending, despite the cumulative impact of three years of excess inflation and high interest rates.

Retail sales, monthly percent change, seasonally adjusted:

Aug. -0.1

Sept. 0.9

Oct. 0.6

Nov. 0.8

Dec. 0.4

Jan. (est.) -0.1

Source: FactSet