Coming Week: Sunnier Days Ahead

This week is likely to provide more evidence of the overwhelming sentiment that, yes, things are finally starting to get better.

The mood has changed across all levels of the investment spectrum -- from individual investors to top-level policy makers across the world. On Friday, a senior official at the International Monetary Fund said the group will lift its 2010 global growth forecast, noting that while the outlook is still shaky, the pace of economic decline has moderated.

In the U.S., initial jobless claims are easing, and even with higher mortgage rates, there are still encouraging signals from the depressed housing market. While none of this means the economy has turned around quite yet, the index of leading indicators is surging, which is seen by some as an indication that a recovery is imminent.

"Recent data suggest the recession is ending," says a recent report by market strategists at Barclays Capital, citing those and other factors as evidence that "positive growth is imminent."

Slated for this week week are new and existing home sales data, durable goods orders, final figures for economic output during the first quarter, and consumer-related data on personal income, spending, inflation and sentiment. Investors also are likely to scrutinize weekly jobless claims, hoping that "continuous" claims continued to fall, as they did in the last report.

Arpitha Bykere, an economic analyst for the bearish Nouriel Roubini's RGEMonitor.com, says such a result would be "a huge positive because it shows companies have started hiring."

1 What would best describe your stance heading into the coming week of trading? Bullish Bearish Neutral 2 Which of these sectors do you think is set to move up in the coming week? --Choose One--Aerospace and DefenseAirlinesAutomobilesBeverages and Food ProductsBiotechnologyCommercial BanksComputers and PeripheralsConsumer NondurablesEnergy Equipment & ServicesHMOs and HospitalsHomebuildingInsuranceIntegrated OilInternet, Software ServicesInvestment Bankers and BrokersMediaMultiline RetailPharmaceuticalsPrecious MetalsSemis, Semi EquipmentTelecom EquipmentTobacco and AlcoholWireless CommunicationsUtilities 3 Which of these sectors do you think is set to move down in the coming week? --Choose One--Aerospace and DefenseAirlinesAutomobilesBeverages and Food ProductsBiotechnologyCommercial BanksComputers and PeripheralsConsumer NondurablesEnergy Equipment & ServicesHMOs and HospitalsHomebuildingInsuranceIntegrated OilInternet, Software ServicesInvestment Bankers and BrokersMediaMultiline RetailPharmaceuticalsPrecious MetalsSemis, Semi EquipmentTelecom EquipmentTobacco and AlcoholWireless CommunicationsUtilities View the results without voting