Auto and pending home sales will be the main economic data releases of the day, while on the political front President Barack Obama is expected to appoint a Senate Republican as head of the Commerce Department.
At 10 a.m. EST, the National Association of Realtors will release U.S. December pending home sales, which are expected to come in flat compared to the previous month's 4.0% decline.
At 10:30 a.m. EST, the Bank of Canada will sell C$18.0 billion in various government securities. The operation will be followed by a C$500 million repurchase from the central bank at 11:15 a.m. EST.
At 1 p.m. EST, the U.S. Treasury will sell $34 billion in four week bills.
At 5 p.m. EST, ABC will release its consumer comfort index for the week ending Feb. 1. In the previous week, the index stood at -54.
U.S. President Barack Obama will name Senate Republican Judd Greg as Commerce Secretary, sparking speculation that the New Hampshire Governor could appoint a democrat to fill his post, giving the party a filibuster-proof Senate.
The U.S. auto sector is back in focus on Tuesday with domestic vehicle sales for January expected at 7.7 million compared to the 7.8 million in December and total sales expected at 10.2 million from 10.3 million the month prior.
Also look out for official announcements from GM and Chrysler, which are preparing to announce details of an employee buyout plan in a bid to cut costs. On Monday, CNBC reported that Chrysler was offering $50k and a $25k voucher for the purchase of a vehicle to any UAW employee willing to take a buyout.
10:00 US Pending Home Sales M/M December Exp: +0.0% Prior: -4.0%
10:30 CA BOC to Sell $18B in Regular Bond Auction
11:15 CA BOC to Conduct Repurchase Operation
13:00 US Treasury to Sell 34B in 4-Week Bills
17:00 US ABC Consumer Confidence W/E Feb. 1 Prior: -54
US Total Vehicle Sales January Exp: +10.2M Prior: +10.3M
US Domestic Vehicle Sales January Exp: +7.7M Prior: +7.8M
By Erik Kevin Franco and edited by Stephen Huebl
©CEP News Ltd. 2009