It’s too soon to assume the worst yet. On the other hand, it’s not too soon to prepare for the worst even as we hope for the best.

Last week, stocks lost ground for the second time in three weeks. More than that, the major indices are now putting a great deal of pressure on some critical support levels. Worse still, we’re seeing clear signs of waning bullish momentum. That’s not to say that bearish momentum has developed yet. It is to say, however, this is how bearish momentum starts. The good news is, there’s a ton – far more than usual – technical support in place ready to rekindle the bullishness that materialized in the latter half of February.  It’s just a matter of using it.

We’ll put a closer look at those technical floors in a moment, right after a quick run-down of this week’s most important economic data.

Economic Data

This past week’s economic news was as light and as uneventful as originally figured. There were no major curve-balls. In fact, the only item of any real interest from last week was the release of the most recent FOMC meeting minutes. As it turns out, there is a little more interest and support for an April rate-hike than first presumed. A mid-year rate increase also remains a distinct possibility. Once again though, the Federal Reserve’s voting members still want to see more concrete signs of economic strength before pudding that burden on the economy.

Economic Calendar

Source: Briefing.com

This week’s economic dance card is quite full.

For starters, we’re going to get a good look at March’s inflation numbers, for producers as well as consumers. This is going to be one of the big data sets Janet Yellen and the rest of the Fed are going to be eyeing to make any interest rate decisions in the near future. Both the PPI and CPI rates are expected to move higher after a February lull. Either way, the annualized inflation rates are now approaching the Fed’s targeted rates, but still on the rise.