@ The White House
In the morning, the President and the Vice President will receive the Presidential Daily Briefing in the Oval Office.
Later in the morning, the President will host Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada and President Felipe Calderon of Mexico for the North American Leaders? Summit (NALS) in the State Dining Room. This meeting will build on wide-ranging and ongoing cooperation among the United States, Canada, and Mexico with a particular focus on economic growth and competitiveness, citizen security, energy, and climate change. The leaders will also discuss North America?s role in the Americas in anticipation of the Summit of the Americas in Cartagena, Colombia later in April, as well as other global economic, political, and security issues.
In the afternoon, the President will meet for lunch with Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada and President Felipe Calderon of Mexico in the Green Room.
Later in the afternoon, the President will hold a joint press conference with Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada and President Felipe Calderon of Mexico in the Rose Garden. Later, the President and the Vice President will meet with Secretary of State Clinton in the Oval Office. Lastly, the President will meet with senior advisors in the Oval Office.
@ Wall Street
February?s payroll figures will be the highlight of the upcoming week (April 2?6), and another positive report is expected: 210,000 jobs added, with a nominal decrease in the unemployment rate (to 8.2%).
This would be consistent with the data on initial unemployment insurance claims, which have declined steadily, and continued evidence of labor market optimism from consumer surveys. Despite higher gas prices, light vehicle sales should remain robust in March, though February?s 15.0-million sales pace is probably not sustainable in the short term.
The ISM Manufacturing Index is expected to show strength in March, while the ISM Non-Manufacturing Index should pull back slightly but remain in expansion territory. Finally, particularly warm weather in February should give a boost to construction spending.
ISM Manufacturing Index (Mar.) The ISM for manufacturing should firm to 54.0 in March from 52.4 in February. The index will rise not because March was that great, but because February was not as bad as the headline figure suggested. Much of the February dip can be attributed to a 4.6 point drop in the supplier deliveries index, which should rebound in the March reading. Most of the remaining components should show improvement. An item to watch will be exports, which scored a robust February increase.
Construction Spending (Feb.) Construction spending has benefited from mild weather recently. This past winter was the 4th warmest on record and the 20thdriest since 1895. February was mild, and payback numbers are not expected. Instead, a modest 0.3% increase in total spending is projected, with residential spending accounting for all of the increase.
