Five key market events investors are watching this week

Five key market events investors are watching this week Fiona Craig Mon, August 17, 2026 at 6:41 AM EDT 4 min read ^GSPC Financial markets are entering the new trading week amid signs of a traditional summer slowdown, with analysts pointing to the VIX volatility index falling to its lowest level of the year. Despite quieter trading conditions, investors still face a busy calendar of corporate results, economic releases and central-bank developments. Major U.S. retailers are due to report quarterly earnings, preliminary August business activity figures will provide an early indication of economic momentum, and minutes from the Federal Reserve's July meeting could offer additional clues about the outlook for interest rates. China's latest activity figures and a monetary-policy decision from Sweden's Riksbank will also attract attention. 1. Retail earnings put U.S. consumer strength to the test The U.S. earnings season is approaching its final stages, with around 85% of S&P 500 companies that have already reported exceeding expectations. Attention now shifts towards some of America's largest retailers to determine whether the strong corporate reporting season can continue. According to LSEG data cited by Reuters, profits among S&P 500 companies have increased 32.7% when paper gains recorded by technology giants Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) are excluded. Home Depot (NYSE:HD), Target (NYSE:TGT) and Lowe's (NYSE:LOW) are among the major retailers scheduled to rel…