What’s the focus for US stocks this week? The Director thinks the market’s key focus this week is on US consumers. Last week, inflation didn’t worsen further—CPI, core CPI, and PPI were all relatively mild. But retail sales dropped 0.6% month-over-month, raising concerns in the market: Is the US economy cooling down normally, or are consumers already tightening their wallets? On Tuesday, keep an eye on Home Depot, industrial production, and housing starts. Home Depot is especially important because spending on renovations, building materials, and home goods falls under big-ticket discretionary consumption, which is the easiest to delay. If spending in this category weakens, combined with soft manufacturing and real estate data, market concerns about growth will heat up significantly. On Wednesday, watch Target, Lowe’s, and the FOMC meeting minutes. The minutes reflect the Fed’s judgment as of late July, but retail earnings reports will better reveal the current state of consumers. If several companies mention declining average transaction values, slowing big-ticket purchases, or increasing demand for discounts, then the July retail sales dip will be hard to dismiss as just a normal fluctuation. Thursday’s focus is Walmart. If Walmart performs well but Target and Home Depot are weak, it doesn’t necessarily mean consumer spending is still strong. It’s more likely that consumers are still spending but shifting from discretionary items like renovations and home goods to essentials like food, daily necessities, and lower-priced goods. The real question this week is whether consumers still have spending power or if they’re just being more cautious with every dollar. If it’s the former—a mild cooling—the market will continue to price in rate cuts. If it’s the latter, combined with weakness in manufacturing and real estate, the market will start pricing in growth pressures. For now, my outlook on the broader market remains neutral—it all depends on whether US consumers can hold up.