ECB Interest Rate Decision

Following the bank's most recent meeting in September, officials and market observers had all but ruled out the possibility of another quarter-point rate drop from the ECB, which is expected to occur on Thursday.

Since then, the need for quicker cutbacks to help the bloc's economy has grown due to signs that pricing pressures are lessening and economic growth is weakening.

According to some experts, the action on Thursday may lead to consecutive rate reductions.

US Data

On Thursday, investors will get another update on the state of the American consumer market. They are expecting that retail sales data will provide additional context for an economy that is proving to be considerably more resilient than many had anticipated.

Investors have been reevaluating their expectations on how much the Fed would need to lower rates in the upcoming months due to recent labour market data that was stronger than expected. A good retail sales print might further accentuate this trend by providing evidence of strength in a significant area of the largest economy in the world.

Earnings

Friday marked the start of the earnings season, with shares of Wells Fargo and JPMorgan rising after both banks beat projections.

The upcoming week will see the release of reports from a number of large banks, including Bank of America and Citigroup on Tuesday and Netflix on Thursday after the close.

Investors will be closely monitoring Netflix's performance in order to gain insight into the state of consumer spending. Specifically, they will be observing if the streaming service is gaining or losing users, as well as at what rate.

To maintain the stock market's value, which is far higher than its historical norm, companies will need to exceed expectations for profit growth in their quarterly reports.

China

Friday's release of China's third-quarter GDP figures is expected to be the high point of an eventful week for economic statistics from the second-biggest economy in the world.

Leaders are optimistic that they will meet their yearly growth objective of about 5%, even in the face of a poor second quarter and no recovery anticipated in the third.

Given Beijing's recent announcement of robust stimulus measures, which sent mainland markets to all-time highs, investors could ignore the pessimism. Even while some of the initial excitement has subsided, more information on fiscal support can inspire a market rally.