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This is the week the market gets its answers. The Federal Reserve decides on interest rates Wednesday afternoon, and the two companies spending the most on AI report their earnings Wednesday evening. Between those two events, we get the first read on third-quarter growth, the inflation number the Fed trusts most, and a parade of household names. Here is the week, day by day.
Monday, October 26 — Verizon earnings (before the open). The phone company is a dividend stalwart, and its results are a read on whether households are still paying up for wireless. The Fed is in its quiet period before the meeting, so no speeches this week — the silence ends Wednesday at 2 PM.
Tuesday, October 27 — The consumer, three ways (8:30–10:00 AM). Durable goods orders show whether businesses are still buying big-ticket equipment. The Case-Shiller home price index tells us what houses actually sold for in August. And consumer confidence, plus new home sales, land at 10 — a mood check and a reality check on whether that dip in mortgage rates is pulling any buyers back. Coca-Cola also reports before the open: pricing power versus volume, the consumer-staples version of the same question.
Wednesday, October 28 — Decision day (2:00 PM). The Fed announces its rate decision, with Chair Kevin Warsh holding a press conference at 2:30. Markets expect a hold, with the current range at 3.75–4.00%, but September inflation ran hot — CPI at 3.7% — and oil just hit $113. Every word of that press conference gets parsed for December. Then, after the close: Microsoft and Alphabet report. These are the two biggest AI spenders in the market, and after Thursday’s selloff, their earnings are the week’s real verdict on whether the buildout is earning its keep.
Thursday, October 29 — The economy’s report card (8:30 AM). The first estimate of third-quarter GDP lands alongside Personal Income and Outlays — which carries the PCE price index, the inflation measure the Fed actually watches. Jobless claims arrive at the same time; last week’s 194,000 was the quiet kind of strong. On the earnings side, it is a full morning: Eli Lilly (the GLP-1 report the whole market watches), Merck, Altria, and Bristol-Myers before the open, then Amazon after the close to finish the Big Tech earnings gauntlet.
Friday, October 30 — Wages and oil (8:30 AM). The Employment Cost Index is the Fed’s favorite wage-pressure gauge — the number that tells them whether paychecks are pushing prices up. Then the oil majors: ExxonMobil and Chevron report before the open, with Brent at $113 and pump prices stuck near $4.29. Colgate-Palmolive rounds out the morning. If you want to know what expensive oil means for profits versus what it costs you at the pump, Friday morning has both halves of the answer.
Watch next: whatever the Fed signals Wednesday sets up the December meeting, and the jobs report lands the following Friday. The market spent this week asking whether the AI spending earns its keep. Next week, it starts asking whether the economy can handle $113 oil.
Release dates from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Census Bureau, and Federal Reserve schedules; market hours from the NYSE. Earnings dates confirmed against company announcements and reporting calendars; a few late-week names are estimates and can move. Sources checked October 23, 2026.
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