Week ahead: City eyes jam-packed week of economic data and announcements

Investors’ focus on developments in the Russia-Ukraine conflict may be pulled away by a week of jam-packed flagship economic announcements and data.

Last week was an extremely volatile one for London’s premier FTSE 100 index, swinging from a low of 6,674 to a high of 7,672. It eventually finished up 2.41 per cent.

Wild market movements were driven by investors responding sharply to news of the Kremlin stepping up its assault on Ukraine and surging energy prices.

Concern that elevated oil and gas prices could hit western economic growth this year filtered throughout markets, prompting investors to ditch stocks and flow into safe haven assets.

Fresh UK jobs market data released on Tuesday will reveal whether wage pressures are intensifying as firms bid up pay to attract new talent and retain existing workers amid a tight labour market.

The figures will likely feed into the Bank of England’s rate setting committee’s thinking on whether to hike interest rates for the third time in as many meetings on Thursday.

Threadneedle Street has already lifted rates at successive meetings for the first time since 2004. However, it now has to weigh up trading off growth for taming historically high inflation, which is running at a near 30 year high of 5.5 per cent.

Soaring energy prices triggered by the conflict is set to propel inflation above 10 per cent, according to some economists.

The US Federal Reserve will also announce its latest decision on interest rates on Wednesday. Chair Jerome Powell and co are expected to send rates 25 basis points higher. Just like in Britain, the cost of living in the US is running at a historic high of 7.9 per cent.

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