The U.S. Federal Reserve releases the minutes of its last policy meeting in March, when it held
interest rates and downgraded both the number of rates it expects this year to two from four,
and its projections for the nation's growth rate and inflation. The Fed said in its published
statement at the time that it continued to be concerned about global economic risks blowing back
on the U.S. economy. (1400/1800)
Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, a pragmatic hawk and voter on U.S. monetary policy this
year, will again weigh in on how many interest rate hikes the economy can absorb this year given
continued strong job gains and some signs of inflation. Mester speaks on the U.S. and regional
economic outlook and monetary policy before a joint luncheon hosted by the Cleveland Association
for Business Economics, the CFA Society Cleveland, and the Risk Management Association of
Northern Ohio. (1220/1620) Separately, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard gives welcome
remarks before a Homer Jones Memorial Lecture event (1830 /2230) and holds media availability
(1730 /2130) in St. Louis. Meanwhile, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan, who has said that the
Fed should be patient on raising rates, participates in a moderated question-and-answer session
before the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth, in Dallas. (2000 /0000)
Monsanto (NYSE:MON) Co will report second-quarter results after currency headwinds and aggressive
seed-industry price cutting forced the seeds and agrochemicals company to slash 2016
earnings-per-share guidance last month in a rare, mid-quarter move. Monsanto's shares are down
about 25 percent from a year earlier amid a steep commodities price downturn and declining farm
incomes that have blunted demand for crop inputs such as seeds, fertilizers and pesticides. But
the company has a brighter long-term outlook with major product roll-outs in the United States,
Brazil and Argentina that are expected to boost revenue.
Constellation Brands Inc (NYSE:STZ) reports fourth-quarter results. The Modelo and Corona beer maker raised
its forecast for beer sales in January, boosted by strong demand for its Mexican beer brands.
Strong sales growth of beer cans and the expanding distribution of craft beer by Ballast Point,
which Constellation bought late last year, are expected to have helped in the quarter. Investors
will look out for details on the recall of Corona Extra 12-packs and 18-packs of beer due to the
presence of glass shards.
The Mortgage Bankers Association will issue its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage
application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand. (0700/1100)
Royal Bank of Canada holds annual meeting in Montreal amid concerns over its exposure to the oil
& gas sector and capital strength. The bank has the highest direct exposure to the energy sector
among Canada's largest banks and the biggest retail exposure to Alberta, where there are fears
job losses could lead to higher arrears and defaults on debt such as credit cards and mortgages.
The Ivey Purchasing Managers Index is expected to show the pace of purchasing activity in Canada
picked up to 55.0 in March after slowing sharply the month before. The seasonally adjusted index
fell to 53.4 from 66.0 in January.
Brazil's automakers' association releases automobile production data for March. Automobile
output fell 12.5 percent and sales dropped 5.5 percent in February from January. (0930/1330
The Urban Land Institute holds webinar to release its Real Estate Consensus Forecast Results,
focusing on the near-term and longer-term projections for a wide variety of 27 key economic and
real estate indicators, ranging from employment figures to transaction volume, housing starts,
and commercial property sector performance.
The Women in the World summit is to be held in New York City. Participants in the three-day
annual event include Meryl Streep, Laura Bush, First Lady of Afghanistan Rula Ghani, IMF
Managing Director Christine Lagarde and Diane von Furstenberg.
LIVECHAT-EQUITY MARKETS with Reuters correspondent Alistair Smout
Join Reuters equity correspondent Alistair Smout for a round up of the themes driving equity
markets. To join the Global Markets Forum, click here