Americas

Investors head into the first full week of 2026 facing a busy US economic calendar, with attention firmly on December’s labor market data, ISM PMI surveys, and the preliminary January reading of the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment index. The December jobs report is expected to show nonfarm payrolls rising by about 55,000, down from 64,000 in November, while the unemployment rate is seen edging lower to 4.5% from a more than four-year high of 4.6%. Average hourly earnings are forecast to increase 0.3% month-on-month, up from 0.1% previously, and 3.6% year-on-year, suggesting wage-driven inflation pressures remain in place. The ISM surveys are likely to signal another month of contraction in manufacturing and a modest slowdown in services activity, while the Michigan sentiment data is expected to show broadly stable consumer morale at the start of the year. Additional US releases include December ADP employment figures, November JOLTS job openings, third-quarter labor productivity, housing starts and building permits for October and November, as well as delayed October data on factory orders and foreign trade. Several Federal Reserve officials are also scheduled to speak, with markets watching closely for clues on the policy outlook following last month’s rate cut. Elsewhere in America, Canada will publish December employment data and the Ivey PMI, along with October trade figures. Mexico is set to release inflation and consumer confidence data, while Brazil will report CPI, trade balance, and industrial production. S&P Global Services PMIs across the region will also be in focus.

Midtown Manhattan, NY

Europe

Preliminary inflation data will be the focus next week across Europe, with the Euro Area, Germany, France, and Italy set to release their initial readings. Inflation is expected to remain steady in the Euro Area at 2.1% in December, in France at 0.9%, and in Italy at 1.1%, while in Germany inflation is expected to slow to 2.0% from 2.3%. In Switzerland, consensus points to a small uptick in annual consumer price inflation to 0.1%. In Turkey, monthly inflation is set to accelerate to 1.0% from 0.9%, although the annual rate is still expected to ease marginally to 31%. Beyond consumer prices, Germany’s unemployment rate is likely to remain steady at 6.3%, with the number of unemployed approaching the 3 million mark. Euro area unemployment is also expected to be unchanged at 6.4%, while Italy’s unemployment rate is seen holding at 6.0%. In Germany, factory orders most likely declined in November after two months of gains, which would weigh on industrial production. PMI data for Switzerland is expected to show manufacturing activity moving closer to stagnation at the end of the year. Other data to watch include the Euro Area business survey; trade balance figures for Germany, France, and Turkey; retail sales data for the Euro Area, Germany and Italy; France’s industrial production; Spain’s unemployment data; and UK mortgage data, construction PMI, and the Halifax house price index.

Frankfurt, Germany

Asia Pacific

China will release a series of key macroeconomic indicators next week, with December’s RatingDog Services PMI widely expected to dip slightly to 52.0, marking the fourth consecutive month of moderation while remaining firmly in expansion territory amid ongoing policy support. Meanwhile, consumer inflation is likely to have eased, while producer prices are expected to have dropped. Japan will post its earnings aggregates, and India is set to release preliminary fiscal-year GDP growth estimates. In Southeast Asia, Indonesia is set to release November trade balance data showing a modest widening of the surplus, while December inflation is seen easing to 2.6%. In the Philippines, investors will watch December inflation and November unemployment data. In Australia, November price data is expected to show that consumer inflation eased to 3.7% annually. Other major Aussie releases are set to show bulding permits rebounding and the trade surplus widening from the previous month.