Hello friends and Fortune readers.
The stock market will look to stay on its roll after five weeks of gains. Apple starts off the week with a product unveiling event that could reveal a new, smaller iPhone and, later on Monday, voters will be able to watch all of the remaining presidential candidates on one CNN special. Meanwhile, Nike leads the list of companies reporting quarterly earnings in a week where Americans will be shelling out to stock up on candy for the Easter holiday.
Here’s what you need to know for the week ahead.
1. Stocks and data
U.S. stocks will try this week to keep things rolling after posting their fifth-straight week of gains, spurred by the ongoing rebound in oil prices. Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finally made it back above the 17,000-point mark as it creeped back into positive territory for the year. Investors will have their eyes on new economic data expected to show that single-family home sales increased by 3.1% in February after a big drop in January. Meanwhile, on Thursday, the government is likely to report that orders for durable goods fell by 2.8% last month. And the Commerce Department will release its latest estimate for the U.S. economy’s fourth-quarter gross domestic product on Friday, when markets will be closed for Good Friday.
2. Apple’s big event
Analysts expect the tech giant will unveil a new, smaller iPhone as well as an updated iPad and new band options for the Apple Watch at its spring event at Apple (AAPL) headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. Apple’s stock dipped at the start of 2016 due to concerns over a slowdown in iPhone sales, though share prices have since rebounded into positive territory for the year amid investor optimism for the company’s new line of products. Apple may return to 4-inch screens for its new iPhones after previously offering larger screens for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
3. CNN’s primary special
CNN president Jeff Zucker has adamantly claimed that the media is not responsible for Donald Trump’s political success. On Monday night, Time Warner’s (TWX) CNN network will give equal time to Trump and both of his GOP rivals, as well as both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. The network is hosting a three-hour primary season special featuring live, individual interviews with each of the five remaining presidential candidates. The event takes place on the same night that Fox News (FOX) had originally planned yet another GOP debate, until Trump and Ohio governor John Kasich both said they would skip it.
4. Nike earnings
The athletic apparel giant recently made headlines by unveiling a new sneaker with laces that tighten automatically. On Tuesday, Nike (NKE) is expected to post third-quarter profit that beats Wall Street’s forecasts, as the company has seen strong sales growth amid increased demand for basketball and running shoes. Investors will want to hear any updates to Nike’s earnings forecast as well as executives’ thoughts on how various product lines have performed.
5. Easter holiday
Markets are closed Friday for the Good Friday holiday, with Easter Sunday two days later. Last week, the National Retail Federation estimated that Americans will spend $2.4 billion on candy for Easter this year, which is more than was spent on Halloween candy.
—Reuters contributed to this post.
