Investors will look to Germany's Ifo business confidence index this week for signs that Europe's biggest economy, and therefore the euro zone, is poised for economic revival.
They will also inflation from Italy and Germany closely.
Italy reports on Thursday and German data is released sometime during the week.
The German Ifo is released today. A Reuters poll of 15 economists forecast the closely-watched west German sentiment index will edge up to 84.9 points in November after hitting an eight-year low of 84.7 in October.
Predictions that the euro zone will follow the US economy as it mends in 2002 may result in a small improvement in the survey, analysts said.
They were also looking for US third quarter Gross Domestic Product to be confirmed as contracting at a 1.1 percent rate on Friday.
Monday
Results: Dailywin Group (H1), Danisco (Q3), Raft International, Windsor.
A.G.M.: Brit Insurance (e.g.m.), ENI (e.g.m.), Envesta, Hiscox (e.g.m.), Leicester City, Merrill Lynch, NMT, Waterman Partnership, Wolverhampton & Dudley.
Indicators: German Ifo business climate index (Nov); US NAtional Association of Housebuilders index (Dec).
Others: Irish Dairy Board end-year review.
Tuesday
Results: 3Com (Q2), Gucci (Q3), John Menzies (H1), Leeds Group, Littlewoods (H1), Pearson (Q3), Remy Cointreau (H1), Stewart & Wight (H1).
A.G.M.: Exeter Investment Group, Foreign & Col Emerging, International Biotechnology, Lowland Inv Trust, Terence Chapman Group.
Meetings: Oireachtas Joint Committee on Enterprise and Small Business discusses motor insurance for young drivers; WTO dispute settlement body meets (Geneva); Bank of Japan policy board meets (Tokyo - to Wed).
Indicators: EMU consumer prices (Nov) and industrial production (Oct); US housing permits and starts (Nov); French current account (Sep); Italian consumer prices (Nov).
Others: European Central Bank (ECB) President Wim Duisenberg to testify before the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee (Brussels).
Wednesday
Results: Condor Environmental (H1), FedEx (Q2), General Mills (Q2), Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Palm (Q2).
A.G.M.: Bett Brothers, Edison (e.g.m.), Montedison (e.g.m.).
Meetings: First Tuesday and Ericsson present Wireless Wednesday on "Telemetry - Smart Wireless Solutions" (Burlington Hotel, Dublin).
Indicators: British trade balance (Oct) and non-EU trade (Nov); US international trade (Oct) and leading indicators (Nov); Italian industrial orders/sales (Sep), EU trade (Oct) and non-EU trade (Nov); French consumer prices (Nov).
Others: German economic research institute, IFO, holds news conference on the economic situation at the end of 2001, current economic topics and survey results.
Thursday
Results: Bear Stearns, ID Data (H1), Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Nike (Q2).
A.G.M.: Goshawk Insurnace Holdings (e.g.m.), J.Smart Contractors.
Meetings: ECB governing council meets by teleconference.
Indicators: US federal budget (Nov) and Philadelphia Federal survey (Dec); British current account (Nov); French consumer prices (Nov) and consumer spending (Nov); German producer prices (Nov); Italian GDP (Q3).
Friday
A.G.M.: Protagona, Rapid Technology Group.
Indicators: EMU trade balance (Oct); US personal income/consumption (Nov), real GDP (Q3), final sales (Q3), implicit deflator (Q3) and Michigan Sentiment survey (Dec); German import prices (Nov); Italian retail sales (Oct).
