Looking Ahead: March 18 through March 22, 2013

While economic data from the UK and Europe were weaker than expected, most U.S. data improved. The Swiss National Bank, Reserve Bank of New Zealand and the Bank of Korea left their respective monetary policies unchanged. Data from China showed that inflation picked up while increases in output and retail sales disappointed. The data highlights for this week will be flash manufacturing PMIs from China, the Eurozone, France, Germany and the United States. The Federal Reserve holds a two day meeting to be followed by the Fed President’s quarterly press conference.