Inflation, housing, jobs and corporate earnings will dominate the business calendar this week

NEW YORK (AP) — Inflation updates dominate the calendar this week, along with a checkup on the housing market and more data on employment in the U.S.

The latest updates come a week after voters across the U.S. gave Democrats a sweep of Congress in the midterm elections as stubbornly high prices on everything from gasoline to groceries squeeze households and businesses. The U.S. war with Iran that started in February slashed global oil supplies and fueled inflation that was already stubbornly high amid President Donald Trump's unpredictable tariff conflict with much of the world.

Economists, investors and policy makers are all closely watching economic indicators to get a better sense of the continued impact that the war and tariffs are having on prices, housing and employment.

Here’s a look at some of the key reports coming in the week ahead.

Rising prices remain a pressure point on the broader economy and the latest updates are not expected to show that has changed.

On Tuesday, the U.S. will release the consumer price index for October and economists are projecting that the rate of inflation increased to 3.9% from 3.7% in September. The index measures price changes for a wide range of products and services. The CPI has shown inflation rising at more than 3% since March, a month following the U.S. war with Iran and the big surge for energy prices that jolted gasoline prices and shipping costs.

On Friday, the U.S. will release the producer price index for October, which captures inflation before it reaches consumers. The September report showed the biggest increase since December 2022 and that data showed that rising fuel prices, particularly for diesel fuel, continue to push shipping and warehousing prices higher.

Crude prices plunged in the past week however, following U.S. midterm elections. Many believe Democrats, who routed President Donald Trump's GOP, will push to end the conflict with Iran that has sent energy prices soaring.

The housing market remains weighed down by high prices and rising interest rates. Home sales have been stagnant and the latest update on sales of previously occupied homes is expected to reflect that trend. The National Association of Realtors on Thursday will release its October report for existing home sales. Economists expect it to be mostly unchanged from September.

Home sales have been mostly hovering close to a 4-million annual pace going back to 2023, far short of the historic norm that is closer to 5.2 million. Home prices have risen on an annual basis for 39 months in a row and the average rate on the benchmark 30-year mortgage is hovering around its highest level in nearly three years. Mortgage rates will likely remain high as the Federal Reserve weighs another hike to its benchmark interest rate at its December meeting in an effort to try to cool stubbornly hot inflation.

The U.S. on Thursday will release its weekly update on unemployment claims, which are a proxy for layoffs. Economists monitor the weekly data because they can be a sign of where the job market is headed. The latest weekly update shows that claims remain at historically low levels.

The broader job market remains resilient. U.S. employers created 165,000 new jobs in October. The jobs market has been remarkably resilient, but has shown signs of stress.

Wage growth has been slow and hasn't been keeping up with inflation, making the squeeze from rising prices even more painful for households. And while layoffs have been held largely in check, it is growing more difficult to find a job if you are let go.

There will be a smattering of notable corporate earnings next week that will likely provide insights into the state of artificial intelligence and data centers, as well as Hollywood.

After a brutal week in AI, CoreWeave will report quarterly earnings Tuesday. The data center company has been seen by some as more vulnerable as the costs of borrowing money rise. Its shares fell close to 20% in the past week. Cisco and Applied Materials report results on Thursday.

SkyDance posts earnings on Monday, the first since its Paramount studios closed on an $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, ushering in a new Hollywood giant.

FILE - Workers hold a hose as concrete in poured to form a beam on a residential building under construction, Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File)

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Berkshire Hathaway repurchased $9.6 billion worth of its own shares in the third quarter, but Geico disappointed and its overall profit fell more than 28% as the value of its investments changed.

But the buybacks likely came to a halt recently as Berkshire's Class A stock price surged past $878,000 and topped where it was before Warren Buffett surprised investors with his plans to retire at the annual meeting in May 2025. He gave up the chairman title in September after relinquishing the CEO job to Greg Abel in January.

Berkshire's massive cash pile also returned to growing in the third quarter and reached $377.4 billion, up from $365.5 billion at the end of June.

CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert said Geico is in a tough spot right now with insurance premiums declining at the same time the average cost of the claims are increasing. Berkshire underwriting profit at all its insurers fell to $1.35 billion from last year's $2.37 billion. Geico accounted for most of that by generating $982 million this year, down from $1.77 billion a year ago.

Investor Chris Ballard, who is managing director at Check Capital, said they were not disappointed in Geico's numbers because they reflect that the company is investing again in its iconic spokeslizard and trying to attract more customers. Getting more aggressive at writing new policies always tends to put pressure on an auto insurer's bottom line.

“It should be looking better. Progressive is doing better, but they were doing so well for so long. They had cut their advertising for quite a while there,” said Ballard, whose firm invested in Berkshire. “So we've been kind of expecting this on our end.”

Seifert said Berkshire's noninsurance businesses that Abel has overseen for years — such as manufacturers like Precision Castparts, the utilities and BNSF railroad — seem to be performing better than its massive insurance unit even with the lack of major hurricanes or other catastrophes this year.

“I think we’re seeing the businesses that play to Greg’s strengths do well. But the question is what about the rest of the franchise,” Seifert said.

Berkshire reported a $22.1 billion profit, or $15,502 per Class A share, on Saturday morning. That's down from $30.8 billion, or $21,413 in last year's third quarter, but those bottom-line figures always tend to obscure how the dozens of companies the conglomerate owns are performing.

The company has long recommended that investors pay more attention to operating earnings, which exclude the value of its investments that can vary widely, but those also slipped nearly 6% to $12.7 billion, or $8,907 per Class A share. That's down from $13.485 billion, or $9,376.15 per Class A share a year ago.

The four analysts surveyed by FactSet Research had predicted Berkshire would report operating earnings of $8,821.84 per Class A share.

Berkshire owns several major insurers, including Geico, a collection of big utilities, BNSF railroad and a varied assortment of manufacturing and retail companies, including Precision Castparts and See’s Candy.

This story has been updated to correct that $1.35 billion is the total underwriting profit at all of Berkshire's insurers — not just Geico's underwriting profit.

FILE - Sean DeFendi of Virginia Beach, left, watches over the GEICO Gecko as he uses the Flight Safety International flight simulator in CHI Health Center Omaha for the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting Saturday, May 3, 2025, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz, file)

FILE - Portraits of Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett, left, and CEO Greg Abel sit in a semi truck at the Pilot display in the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting on May 2, 2026, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz, file)