US investors seek recovery clues

WITH the US earnings season winding to a close, a holiday-shortened week on Wall Street may be a relief to investors weary of the wrenching volatility of recent days.

Today is the Memorial Day holiday in America and financial markets are closed. When they reopen on Tuesday, data including personal income, consumption and consumer confidence will help determine the pace of the economy. Personal income is expected to rise 0.3% for April while consumption is thought to have jumped 0.6% as consumers pick up the pace of spending after a relatively quiet winter.

Consumers remain price conscious, which has helped companies such as Costco. On Thursday, the discount retailer is expected to report earnings of 41 cents a share, from 38 cents a year ago. The Conference Board's consumer confidence gauge is expected to rise to 109.5 from 108.8 the month before.

On Friday, first-quarter productivity is expected to be revised down to 8.0%. Factory orders in April are expected to have increased 0.2%, indicating the revival in the manufacturing sector remains weak.

Data supplied by Thomson Global Markets