In Focus This Week: Fed Decision, Jobs Report, Apple Products And Earnings

The Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting is the main event on the radar of markets this week.

The Fed's Federal Open Market Committee starts its meeting Tuesday and announces the decision on the U.S. interest rate Wednesday at 2 p.m. EST, followed by a news conference by Chair Jerome Powell.

Policymakers are expected to keep the rate unchanged in the range of 5.25% to 5.5%, the highest level in 20 years. The rate has been increased 11 times since last year.

Inflation has slowed in the past months, but remains well above the 2% target. The core PCE index, the Fed's preferred inflation measure, rose 3.7% in September after increasing 3.8% in August.

Powell said in a speech on Oct. 19 that additional interest-rate increases may be necessary as economic growth remains strong and inflation too high.

Jobs Report

One of the most-followed economic data of the U.S. will be released Friday: the labor report for the month of September.

The American economy created 336,000 jobs in September, the highest in eight months and above expectations, while the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.8%.

Economists expect slower job creation for the month of October, according to Trading Economics.

The strength in the labor market is boosting consumer confidence and sustaining economic growth. U.S. gross domestic product more than double its rate of expansion in the third quarter to 4.9%.

Apple

Apple has a product launch event scheduled for Monday, 8 p.m. EST. Analysts expect the company to introduce new iMac desktop computers, including its next-generation silicon chip M3.

The company's product launch could be an effort to boost sales for the holiday season.

Following that, Apple will release its quarterly results on Thursday, after markets close. The company may comment on sales of the iPhone 15 since it hit stores in September. Apple's revenue fell in the previous quarter on a year-over-year basis.

Other Earnings

This will be one of the busiest weeks of the earnings season. McDonald's reports Monday. JebBlue, Caterpillar and Pfizer are scheduled for Tuesday.

On Wednesday, other big names in technology, including Qualcomm and Airbnb, will show their results after the markets close. Restaurant company Yum! and pharmacy chain CVS also report earlier in the day,

And Thursday, the busiest day of the week, brings the earnings of Eli Lilly, Moderna, Starbucks, Peloton, ConocoPhillips, Hyatt Hotels, Marriott, Carvana, Nikola, Expedia, Marriott, among others.

Congress Debates

After the election of Republican Mike Johnson as Speaker of the House, lawmakers are expected to start discussions of some urgent bills.

President Joe Biden's $106 billion national security package that includes aid to Israel, Ukraine, as well as humanitarian aid to Gaza is one of them.

Johnson has said the support to Israel is a priority for him. But he indicated that the Ukraine aid should be discussed separately.

The speaker will also have to start discussions a solution to fund the government after Nov. 17, when the stopgap measure that avoided a shutdown in October will expire.