The markets month ahead: January events for your trading diary

Check out some of the month’s key events to watch with our first monthly trading preview of 2022.

Economic events to watch in January

US nonfarm payrolls – Friday January 7^th

The year’s first big release is the US nonfarm payrolls. Markets will be hoping for a stronger report compared with December’s which once again disappointed. Just 210,000 roles were added in that report month, compared with 573,000 in Wall Street.

US CPI – Wednesday January 12^th

December 2021’s inflation data is shared with the January US CPI report. Inflation boiled over to a 40-year high in November, and we’re expecting to see similar numbers in this release. For context, the CPI reached a searing 6.8% in November 2021.

US retail sales – Friday January 14^th

Christmas, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday all fall within a traditional dynamite period for US retailers. Initial reports at the end of last year suggest sales this is still the case. Watch for potentially hot retail sales in the face of an inflation ridden economy.

UK CPI – Wednesday January 19^th

UK inflation hit a 10-year high in November, prompting the Bank of England to actually raise rates in a move that surprised markets. It’s unlikely this hot inflation is transitory though. It’s more the case that we’ll see an increase over November’s CPI 5.1% rise when December’s data is released this month.

Global Flash PMI data – Thursday January 20^th

The first PMI blitz of the year comes on Thursday 20^th January with the latest economic indicators from the US, UK, and EU. Did these economies end December on the front foot or has Omicron put a dent in their recovery?

Bank of Canada rate statement – Wednesday January 26^th

The Bank of Canada laid the groundwork for future rate hikes in December’s statement. As many as four could be on the way, and a possible timetable could be announced at Wednesday’s meeting.

FOMC statement – Wednesday January 26^th

The Federal Reserve’s first meeting of the year comes off the back of December’s tapering announcement and rate hike hints. Could Powell and Co. announce their hike intentions and give us an idea of when they could be coming?

US core PCE price index – Friday January 28^th

Following its first meeting, the Fed gets a look at one of its preferred inflation indicators with the release of December’s PCE data. Mirroring CPI data, the PCE index rose at its fastest pace since 1982 last month. Expect a hot reading this January.

Major economic data