1. Payroll outlook far from promising
Americans who worry about their jobs have found recent news less than optimistic. In January, payrolls fell by 17,000 positions. A new report comes Friday, and economists at Goldman Sachs expect it to show payrolls showing zero growth, as joblessness ticks up to 5 percent, from 4.9 percent in January. Their assessment: “Both the weekly jobless claims numbers and consumer assessments of job opportunities have taken a turn for the worse.”
2. Conrad Black set to arrive at prison
It’s D-Day on Monday for former newspaper baron Conrad Black, as he must report to prison. Black, 62, convicted of defrauding the shareholders of his Hollinger International Inc. newspaper empire, once the parent of the Chicago Sun-Times, lost a bid last week to stay free on bond.
3. Manufacturing index likely to drop
The Institute for Supply Management reports its widely followed index of the manufacturing sector Monday. Economists are looking for a drop to about 49, from 50.7 a month earlier. Anything below 50 is seen as evidence the factory sector is shrinking.
4. Auto sales may sputter and stall
The nation’s carmakers, struggling to steer out of the slow lane, report February sales Tuesday. Economist David Rosenberg says things won’t rev up soon. “People are downsizing their personal fleet of three or four cars bought with zero-percent financing,” said Rosenberg of Merrill Lynch. At the same time, he added, “A growing number of leveraged auto buyers are walking away from their loans and cars.”
5. Can early Easter get retail hopping?
Discount and department stores tote up their January sales Thursday. According to economist Ian Shepherdson, merchants are beginning to see the first signs of improved volumes because of an early Easter. The important Christian holiday takes place in less than three weeks, on March 23, the earliest date since 1913. Typically, “sales begin to rise four weeks before the holiday,” said Shepherdson of High Frequency Economics, Valhalla, N.Y.
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wsluis@tribune.com
