After three days of almost no US economic reports, markets will receive a flood of top-tier data on Thursday morning, starting with retail sales, producer prices, jobless claims, Philly Fed and Empire State manufacturing at 8:30 am ET. Next is industrial production at 9:15 am ET, followed by NAHB housing market index and business inventories at 10 am ET.

Separately, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak on the Fed's policy framework review at 8:40 am ET. It's not clear whether the remarks will touch on the current policy situation but any time Powell appears, it's notable.

Of the 8:30 am ET batch, perhaps retail sales will be the focus. Expectations call for sales to rise by 0.1 percent with sales excluding autos up 0.3 percent, modest gains after increases of 1.4 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively in March. Note that these are not inflation adjusted figures. A weaker showing for retail sales would tend to confirm suspicions that consumption is starting to crack under the weight of gloom about the economic outlook.

Market Focus details key factors in the coming day that will impact the economic outlook and the financial markets. These include central bank events, economic indicators, policymaker speeches as well as expected political and corporate developments.

Keeping up-to-date with event schedules and the economic calendar is key to understanding the global financial system. Econoday's Market Focus allows investors and policymakers to carefully track what will be making news and moving the financial markets in the coming day.