The Week Ahead: May 14-18

KEY EVENT:Employment update. The last two national employment reports indicated U.S. job creation was cooling. Conversely, the last two Long Island employment reports showed the strongest back-to-back months of job creation in five years. Will the local trend continue? The answer comes Thursday, when the State Labor Department releases data on the Long Island job market in April.

MONDAY: A week packed with earnings from retailers and companies that sell consumer goods and services begins with Hauppauge electronics provider Voxx International and online coupon company Groupon.

TUESDAY:Consumer price index from the Labor Department and retail sales from the Commerce Department, both for April. Also, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York posts the Empire State index for May, a survey of manufacturing activity in New York. Earnings: Home Depot, JC Penney.

WEDNESDAY: The Federal Reserve releases the minutes from its April meeting and its index on April industrial production. Also, housing starts from the Commerce Department. Earnings: Abercrombie & Fitch, Deere, Limited Brands, Staples, Target.

THURSDAY: Claims for jobless benefits for the week ended May 12 from the Labor Department. Earnings: GameStop, Gap, Intuit, Ross Stores, Wal-Mart Stores.

FRIDAY: Earnings: Ann Taylor, Foot Locker.