Markets Await JC Penney's Quarterly Results and Retail Sales Friday

It will be another important day for the retail sector on Friday, August 12. JC Penney (JCP) - Get Report reports second quarter financial results before the markets open. Analysts expect the retailer to post a loss of $0.15 a share on sales of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter a year ago, the company reported a loss of $0.41 a share with revenue of $2.88 billion. In the first quarter, the company's comparable store sales, an important industry metric, slid 0.4 percent. On the economic calendar, retail sales for July are released at 8:30am Eastern. They are expected to rise 0.4 percent month-over-month. Core retail sales, which does not include autos and gasoline, is set to rise 0.3 percent. Also due out at 8:30am is the July Producer Price Index from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and June business inventories at 10am. TheStreet's Scott Gamm reports from Wall Street.