The bear market rally extended itself to a new high last week and it may continue higher in the near term. the rally is driven by news that is not-as-bad-as-expected but the fact inflation is still very high and cutting into economic activity remains. Last week's CPI is the latest culprit coming in cooler than expected but still a hot 5.9% YOY at the core level. At this pace, the market should be expecting the FOMC to continue hiking at an aggressive pace until inflation is at more manageable levels.

This week the market will be faced with another full slate of economic data and reports from a large portion of the retail sector. On the economic front, retail sales top the list but there are several reads coming out of the housing sector and the Index of Leading Indicators as well. The Leading Indicators have been negative for the last three months and could come in negative again.