Berkshire earnings jump | Big inflation report ahead | Infrastructure bill this weekend?

Inflation data is the hot topic for markets in the week ahead with reports expected on consumer and producer level inflation.

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE SAT, AUG 07, 2021 WEEKEND BRIEF EDITOR'S NOTE Reports on consumer and producer level inflation will be the big focus in markets in the week ahead. Investors will also be watching Federal Reserve speakers for clues on how close the central bank is to announcing plans to taper its bond buying program.   Friday's strong July jobs report with 943,000 new payrolls encouraged some market pros to expect the Fed to make an announcement on the wind down of its program as soon as September. The Consumer Price Index is the most important inflation report and it is expected to show a 4.3% inflation pace in July year over year, down from 4.5% in June, when it is released Wednesday. The question with rising inflation is whether it is a temporary phenomena as the Fed says, or a more persistent problem that will force the Fed to move forward to change policy.   One chief market strategist said he expects stocks to "grind higher" as investors digest this process. Patti Domm | CNBC Markets Editor @pattidomm THE WEEK AHEAD Inflation will be the sizzling topic for markets in the week ahead     YOUR WEEKEND BRIEFING  Berkshire Hathaway's operating earnings jump 21% as recovering economy boosts railroad, energy units Warren Buffett's winning equity portfolio is concentrated in just 4 stocks. Here's what they are U.S. Senate meets on Saturday to consider $1 trillion infrastructure bill These stocks that just reported earnings are the most compelling buying opportunities, analysts say There are about 1 million more job openings than people looking for work The infrastructure bill could boost utility stocks, and these are Bank of America's top picks     Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2021 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS