By Kim Khan
Investing.com - The tug-of-war between the bulls and bears continued today, this time the historically bad economic numbers garnering the most attention.
Tomorrow there will be more data on the employment situation, housing and manufacturing.
Earnings continue from banks and there will also be results from Abbott Labs, which is making Covid-19 tests.
And the head of the New York Federal Reserve will hold a video conference.
Here are three things that could move the markets tomorrow.
1. Jobless Claims Seen Climbing Sharply Again
The key economic indicator of the Covid-19 era will be the focus before the bell Thursday.
The Labor Department will issue weekly initial jobless claims figures at 8:30 AM ET (12:30 GMT).
While a drop from the record claims number the week before, economists are still expecting a staggering 5.12 million people filed for first-time unemployment benefits, according to forecasts compiled by Investing.com.
Continuing claims are expected to have jumped to 13.5 million.
At the same time the Commerce Department will report on groundbreaking of new homes and building permits for March.
Housing starts and permits are both expected to fall to an annual rate of 1.3 million, according to the consensus estimates.
Also at 8:30 AM ET, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve will issues its measure of manufacturing in the region for April.
The Philly Fed index is seen dropping to -30 from -12.7 in March.
2. Abbott Labs, More Banks to Report
As the earnings continue to come in, Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) will be closely watched before the bell.
The pharma company announced this week it has launched a lab-based test for Covid-19, its third one for the virus. Abbott Labs plans to distribute 4 million of the tests in April, going up to 20 million per month in June.
Analysts are expecting the company to post a profit of 63 cents per share on revenue of $7.6 billion, according to forecasts compiled by Investing.com.
Also of note in dealing with the health aspects of the pandemic, drugstore chain Rite Aid (NYSE:RAD) will report. Along with numbers, investors will be looking to see what the company is planning for expansion of its drive-up testing locations for the coronavirus.
Rite Aid is seen posting a quarterly loss of 15 cents per share on sales of about $5.5 billion.
Financial earnings also keep rolling in, with Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) reporting ahead of trading.
The investment bank is forecast to have earnings $1.21 per share, revenue of about $9.9 billion.
Also reporting in the sector before the bell will be BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) and Bank of NY Mellon (NYSE:BK).
3. Fed’s Williams Via Video
A day after the New York Federal Reserve reported that its April Empire State Manufacturing index sank to its lowest level ever at -78.2, New York Fed President John Williams will give investors some thoughts on how the epicenter of the virus in the U.S. is faring.
Williams (NYSE:WMB) will give a video conference for the Economic Club of New York at 2 PM ET (18:00 GMT).
Williams will also be able to give updates on the Fed’s massive stimulus program and insights on how the economy will fare when it restarts.