Light week for US economic reports

Service-sector business barometers for the United States, the eurozone and Britain kicked off a light week for economic reports. On Monday, research firm Markit Economics said service sector indexes for Britain and the eurozone showed signs of stabilization for the economic recovery in Europe. The index for the eurozone reached a two-year high in July. In Britain, the index rose to its highest level in six and a half years, Markit said. In the Eurozone, retail sales slipped 0.5 percent from May to June, Eurostat said. The Institute of Supply Management said the purchasing managers index for the United States showed growth for the 43rd consecutive month. The Japanese government's is set to release a leading indicator index on Tuesday, the same day the Office of National Statistics in Britain is to issue a report on industrial production and Statistics Canada is to release its international trade report for June. The Bank of England is to release a quarterly inflation report Wednesday. Also Wednesday, StatsCan is to release June's building permit figures and the U.S. Federal Reserve is to release a consumer credit report. The weekly unemployment claims report from the U.S. Labor Department is due Thursday. On Friday, StatsCan is scheduled to release July's employment situation report. The U.S. Commerce Department is scheduled to release a wholesale inventories report for June on Friday. This week's potential market-influencing speeches includes a presentation on the economy Monday by the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Richard Fisher, and a speech on Tuesday by the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Charles Evans. Copyright 2013 United Press International, Inc. (UPI). Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.