Overview of Key Economic Events and Corporate Reports for the Week of February 23 – March 1, 2026. EU Sanctions, New 15% US Global Tariff, CPI and PPI Inflation, Nvidia Earnings Season, Banking and IT Companies, OPEC+ Meeting. Analytics for Investors.
The week of February 23 – March 1, 2026, presents several drivers for global markets: trade restrictions and tariff policies from the United States, the European Union's sanctions decisions against Russia, a block of data on inflation and business activity, as well as a busy corporate earnings season. For investors, the key question this week is how quickly trade measures and sanctions will begin to impact inflation, supply chains, company margins, and central bank rate expectations.
Particular attention will be paid to the technology sector and the artificial intelligence market (Nvidia and cloud company reports), consumer spending (Home Depot, Lowe’s), the financial sector (large North American banks), and the Russian market, where trading is proceeding as usual. Geographically, this week is significant for the US, Europe, and Russia, while the start of the week in Asia coincides with holidays in the region's largest economies.
Monday, February 23: Holidays in Asia, EU Sanctions and Start of Earnings Week
- China: No trading (Lunar New Year).
- Japan: No trading (Emperor’s Birthday).
- Europe and Russia: Decision expected on the 20th package of EU sanctions against Russia (sector-specific risks for commodities, logistics, insurance, settlement, and compliance).
- Russia: Trading continues (Moscow Exchange and SPB Exchange) – heightened sensitivity to sanction headlines and currency dynamics.
- US: Chicago Fed National Activity Index (January) – 16:30 MSK.
- US: Factory Orders (December) – 18:00 MSK.
- ECB: Speech by ECB President Christine Lagarde – 20:30 MSK.
Corporate Reports (Focus of the Day)
- US (Major/Notable Issuers): Domino’s Pizza, Keysight Technologies, Diamondback Energy, ONEOK, BWX Technologies, Hims & Hers, Freshpet, Axsome Therapeutics, Ovintiv.
- Market Commentary: The combination of reports in the consumer segment, industrial/defense, and energy sets the tone for risks at the start of the week and shapes expectations ahead of the peak in technology earnings.
What Investors Should Watch For: The market's reaction to potential EU sanctions and signals from Lagarde will be more critical than individual macro publications. In equities – assess whether the rotation between "quality growth" and cyclical sectors is intensifying against the backdrop of trade risks and rate expectations.
Tuesday, February 24: New 15% US Global Tariff, China's LPR and Retail/Platform Earnings
- US: The new 15% global tariff on all countries goes into effect – risk of renewed inflation acceleration on goods, pressure on importers, and sectors with a high proportion of foreign components.
- US: Donald Trump addresses both houses of Congress (annual State of the Union address) – potential clarifications on trade and fiscal policy.
- China: LPR (Loan Prime Rate) – 04:15 MSK.
- US: ADP Employment (weekly publication) – 16:15 MSK.
- US: S&P/Case-Shiller (December) – 17:00 MSK.
- Bank of England: Speech by Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey – 17:15 MSK.
- US: Consumer Confidence (February) – 18:00 MSK.
- US: Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index (February) – 18:00 MSK.
- ECB: Lagarde’s speech – 20:45 MSK.
- Oil (US): API inventories – 00:30 MSK.
Corporate Reports (All Key Public Companies of the Day)
- US: Home Depot (a crucial indicator of consumer and housing repair cycles), AMC Entertainment, MercadoLibre (Latin America, e-commerce/fintech), Axon Enterprise, Workday, DigitalOcean.
- Canada: Preliminary focus on the financial sector ahead of a block of banking reports later in the week.
- Market Commentary: The combination of Home Depot and IT platforms (Workday) aids investors in assessing the resilience of household spending and corporate software budgets amidst tariff pressures.
What Investors Should Watch For: US trade policy and the tone of the Congressional address may create momentum for the dollar, yields, and commodity prices. In reports – compare margins and forecasts for companies most dependent on imports and logistics.
Wednesday, February 25: Australian Rate Decision, Eurozone CPI and "Peak" Tech Earnings
- Australia: RBA rate decision – 03:30 MSK.
- Germany: GDP (Q4 2024) – 10:00 MSK.
- Eurozone: CPI (January) – 13:00 MSK.
- Oil (US): EIA inventories – 18:30 MSK.
- Russia: CPI (weekly estimate) – 19:00 MSK.
Corporate Reports (Largest Issuers of the Day)
- US: Nvidia (key benchmark for demand for AI infrastructure), Salesforce, Lowe’s, TJX Companies, Snowflake, Synopsys, Agilent Technologies.
- Market Commentary: Nvidia’s results and those of related companies along the "semiconductors → software/cloud → corporate budgets" chain have the potential to dictate the momentum of the technology sector and risk appetite in the global portfolio.
What Investors Should Watch For: The connection between Eurozone CPI and tech earnings in the US could simultaneously influence rate expectations and growth multiples. In reports – priority should be given to revenue forecasts, client capital expenditures (capex), delivery timelines, and comments on pricing policies.
Thursday, February 26: Negotiations in Geneva, US Jobless Claims and Strong Block of Bank/IT Earnings
- Geneva: Potential US-Iran negotiations (risk factor for oil) and negotiation agenda regarding Ukraine (geopolitical premium in commodity and currency markets).
- ECB: Lagarde’s speech – 11:30 MSK.
- Eurozone: Consumer Confidence (February) – 13:00 MSK.
- Eurozone: Consumer Inflation Expectations (February) – 13:00 MSK.
- US: Initial Jobless Claims – 16:30 MSK.
- Gas (US): EIA inventories – 18:30 MSK.
- US: KC Fed Manufacturing Index (February) – 19:00 MSK.
Corporate Reports (All Key Public Companies of the Day)
- US: Dell Technologies, Intuit, Baidu, Warner Bros. Discovery, Zscaler, Duolingo, CoreWeave.
- Canada: Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.
- Russia: Sberbank (for investors in MOEX – an important benchmark for bank margins, credit quality, and dividend expectations).
- Market Commentary: The combination of banks (credit cycle), cybersecurity (Zscaler), IT financial infrastructure (Intuit), and hardware (Dell) provides a broad view of corporate demand status and income quality.
What Investors Should Watch For: In the oil and gas market – risk reaction to Geneva talks and weekly inventories. In reports – critical dynamics are reserves and net interest margins for banks, retention of clients, growth in ARR/subscriptions, and customer acquisition costs for IT firms.
Friday, February 27: Swiss GDP, Indian and Canadian GDP, US PPI and Final Macro Signals of the Week
- Switzerland: GDP (Q4 2025) – 11:00 MSK.
- Russia: Annual government report in the State Duma (fiscal priorities, state programs, impact on industries and the OFZ market).
- India: GDP (Q4 2025) – 13:30 MSK.
- Canada: GDP (Q4 2025) – 16:30 MSK.
- US: PPI (January) – 16:30 MSK.
- US: Chicago PMI (February) – 17:45 MSK.
Corporate Reports (Focus of the Day)
- Global/US: Earnings reports continue from a wide range of issuers (especially in the energy, small/mid-cap, and cyclical sectors), but the main "heavy" agenda of the week has already been revealed in reports from Tuesday to Thursday.
What Investors Should Watch For: The US PPI is one of the key indicators of "input prices" for companies and potential pressure on consumer inflation. The combination of PPI and GDP data from Canada/India is crucial for assessing global demand and a "soft landing" scenario.
Saturday, February 28: Holiday and Reporting Guidelines
- Earnings Season: Some companies may report results outside standard trading hours. Investors should check corporate releases related to their portfolios and consider potential revisions of analysts' forecasts after the week closes.
- US: Berkshire Hathaway (often reports results on weekends) – an indicator of profit quality in insurance and investment portfolios.
Sunday, March 1: OPEC+ Meeting and Portfolio Adjustment for March
- OPEC+: Meeting – a potential driver for oil, inflation expectations, and currency trends in commodity economies.
OPEC+ decisions are important not only for oil prices but also for the trajectories of inflation and rate expectations in both importing and exporting countries. This could affect portfolio allocations between energy, transportation, consumer sectors, and bonds.
Conclusion: Key Takeaways and Practical Guidelines for Investors
- Main Macro Risk of the Week – Intensification of US trade barriers (15% tariff) and EU sanctions agenda: both factors could rapidly translate into inflationary pressure and a revision of rate expectations.
- Technological Focus – Nvidia's report and the cohort of cloud/software companies: the market will assess not only current figures but also the quality of forecasts, demand for AI infrastructure, and the resilience of corporate budgets.
- Consumer and Housing – Home Depot and Lowe’s in combination with housing index and consumer confidence provide a practical view of demand in the US.
- Financial Sector – The block of reports from major North American banks and Sberbank is important for evaluating the credit cycle, reserves, and net interest margin against a backdrop of changing inflation.
- Commodities – US oil/gas inventories and the OPEC+ meeting define the short-term corridor for oil, and thus for inflation and energy sector equities.
During the week of February 23 – March 1, 2026, investors should maintain a focus on the nexus of "policy → inflation → rates → multiples," while in earnings assessments prioritize forecasts, margins, and management's comments on tariffs, supply chains, and capital expenditures. This combination of factors will determine whether the market continues to support risk assets or shifts to a defensive allocation mode.
