Economic calendar: FED's preferred inflation gauge, PCE in the spotlight 🔔

The end of the week, and also the end of August, promises to be more interesting than the previous days of this week. Investors will receive the U.S. PCE inflation data and inflation expectations from the University of Michigan.

The end of the summer has been particularly "boring" on global financial markets. During the last week of August, there were practically no significant data releases. However, today investors can expect a bit more volatility with the release of July's U.S. PCE data. The Fed prefers PCE over the CPI index because the PCE takes into account current changes in consumer behavior and a broader range of the consumption basket. Analysts expect a slight increase in both the headline and core values, to 2.6% and 2.7% year-over-year, respectively. This is a 0.1 percentage point increase compared to June's report.

Then, at 3:00 PM BST, we will learn the consumer inflation expectations report from the University of Michigan. These are the last important data for August, and investors' attention will shift to PMI, ISM, and labor market data next week.

Detailed schedule for the day:

07:45 AM BST, France - GDP data:

• French GDP (Q2): forecast 1.1% YoY; previous 1.1% YoY;
• French GDP (Q2): forecast 0.3% QoQ; previous 0.2% QoQ;

07:45 AM BST, France - Inflation Data for August:

• French CPI: forecast 1.8% YoY; previous 2.3% YoY;
• French CPI: forecast 0.5% MoM; previous 0.2% MoM;
• French Consumer Spending: forecast 0.4% MoM; previous -0.5% MoM;
• French HICP: forecast 0.5% MoM; previous 0.2% MoM;

08:55 AM BST, Germany - Employment Data for August:

• German Unemployment Rate: forecast 6.0%; previous 6.0%;
• German Unemployment Change: forecast 17K; previous 18K;

10:00 AM BST, Euro Zone - Inflation Data for August:

• Core CPI: previous -0.2% MoM;
• Core CPI: forecast 2.8% YoY; previous 2.9% YoY;
• CPI: forecast 2.2% YoY; previous 2.6% YoY;
• CPI: previous 0.0% MoM;
• HICP ex Energy & Food: previous 2.8% YoY;
• HICP ex Energy and Food: previous -0.1% MoM;

01:30 PM BST, Canada - GDP data:

• GDP Annualized (Q2): forecast 1.6% QoQ; previous 1.7% QoQ;
• GDP: forecast 0.1% MoM; previous 0.2% MoM;

01:30 PM BST, United States - Inflation Data for July:

• PCE Price index: forecast 2.6% YoY; previous 2.5% YoY;
• PCE price index: forecast 0.2% MoM; previous 0.1% MoM;
• Core PCE Price Index: forecast 2.7% YoY; previous 2.6% YoY;
• Core PCE Price Index: forecast 0.2% MoM; previous 0.2% MoM;
• Personal Spending: forecast 0.5% MoM; previous 0.3% MoM;
• Personal Income: forecast 0.2% MoM; previous 0.2% MoM;

03:00 PM BST, United States - University of Michigan inflation report for August:

• Michigan Consumer Sentiment: forecast 67.8; previous 66.4;
• Michigan Current Conditions: forecast 60.9; previous 62.7;
• Michigan Consumer Expectations: forecast 72.1; previous 68.8;
• Michigan 5-Year Inflation Expectations: forecast 3.0%; previous 3.0%;
• Michigan 1-Year Inflation Expectations: forecast 2.9%; previous 2.9%;