Daily Economic Calendar – May 25, 2017

Thursday brings a number of known market movers, so let’s take a closer look.
Several pieces of data regarding the UK economy in the first quarter are up first at 8:30 AM, including the closely watched second estimate GDP. The preliminary estimate puts the quarterly growth at its lowest level in 2 years.

Preliminary Business Investment is out at the same time. Fourth quarter data showed an unexpected drop, following two quarters of growth.
And UK Mortgage Approvals for April will be available at this time as well. The number of approvals has been declining for the past two months, and this trend could continue.
Coming up next at 12:30 PM GMT are a few releases from the United States, and that includes the closely watched weekly update on Jobless Claims. In line with a recurring theme, the previous report was another solid performer; in particular, continuing claims dropped by 22 thousand during the week ending May 6, reaching their lowest level since 1988.
Goods Trade Balance for April is also due at this time. Trade deficit widened in March as exports fell faster than imports.
And Preliminary Wholesale Inventories for April are also worth a look. The preliminary March data suggested a decrease in inventories, but it was later revised to show growth.
There’s little on the schedule until 11:30 in the evening, when the high importance Japanese April CPI is released. The annual inflation remains abysmally low and it’s a major concern for policy makers, but at least it has stood in the positive territory for the past 3 months.