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Can Apple continue to dazzle consumers with new services and products? Has the U.S. economy continued to create new jobs at a rate of more than 200,000 a month? Will decisions on interest rates by the European and British central banks cause action in securities markets?



These are just three of the big questions investors will get answers to this coming week, which also brings other economic news and indicators including updates on US manufacturing, factory orders, vehicle sales, service industries and also the Federal Reserve’s “Beige Book” outlining economic conditions in the Fed system’s 12 regions.

Monday sees the start of Apple’s much anticipated Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, with Apple watchers agog for news on anticipated software updates and any morsels of information about the new Healthbook app, any plans for an Apple “smart home,” as well as further news on its acquisition of Beats Electronics and Beats Music.

Apple aficionados are not expecting any blockbuster announcements like a new Mac, MacBook, Apple TV, iPhone, iPad or even an iWatch — but this is a company that can surprise.

Apple’s stock has soared more than 25 per cent since late January, giving it a monster stock market value of roughly $545 billion — so any information that affects its share price is massive news on Wall Street.

Apple’s shares are trading around $633 — so high that the stock will be split 7-for-1 starting on Friday.

Monday also brings updates on May’s US manufacturing activity from the Institute for Supply Management, construction spending, a planned US Federal debt sale, and a speech by Chicago Fed president Charles Evans.

Tuesday sees updates on US vehicle sales for May, factory orders for April, earnings from Dollar General , and a speech by Kansas City Fed president Esther George.

Wednesday brings news on May’s activity in US service industries, the biggest part of the economy, the Federal Reserve’s “Beige Book” business survey from the Fed’s 12 regional banks, and ADP’s private sector employment report ahead of the big jobs news on Friday.

Thursday will see decisions on interest rates by the European Central Bank and the Bank of England. Some economists expect the ECB to cut its deposit rate even further and even lay out a framework for asset purchases in the future.

Friday brings a speech by Fed governor Jerome Powell and the big economic news of the week with the US jobs report for May.

Analysts are expecting more than 200,000 jobs to have been created for the fourth month in a row — rough estimates are for about 225,000 jobs, down from April but good enough to keep markets happy.



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