Calendar

NEW-HOME SALES
May 27, 10 a.m. EDT
Sales of new homes are expected to be down 1.1% in April, to 520,000, compared with the previous month. Although this will mark the fifth consecutive month of declines, the forecasted drop is smaller than the 8.5% registered in March.

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE
May 27, 10 a.m. EDT
The consumer confidence index is expected to drop to 61.0, from 62.3—the lowest reading since November, 1993. Economists say that these levels historically have been seen only during periods of recession.

DIAMONDS
May 28
A diamond the size of a squash ball will be auctioned off at Christie's in Hong Kong. Weighing in at 101.27 carats, it's the largest colorless diamond to go on the block in nearly two decades. The rock is expected to fetch upwards of $6 million.

POLO RALPH LAUREN (RL)
May 28, 9 a.m. EDT
As consumers rein in spending, sales of some higher-end apparel such as Polo Ralph Lauren continue to shrink. Wall Street expects the company's fourth-quarter earnings to fall 4%, to 65 cents.

SEARS HOLDINGS (SHLD)
May 29
A soft economy is complicating management's efforts to turn around the struggling retailer. Earnings per share for Sears' fiscal 2009 first quarter are expected to be down 84% from the same quarter a year ago, to 18 cents.

H.J. HEINZ (HNZ)
May 29, 8 a.m. EDT
Thanks to strong international sales—52% of the company's revenues come from outside the U.S.—earnings at H.J. Heinz are expected to remain in positive territory. Earnings per share will climb 11%, year over year, to 61 cents for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2008.

COSTCO
May 29
Cash-strapped shoppers are flocking to wholesale clubs seeking bargains. Costco's earnings per share for its 2008 third quarter are expected to climb 16%, to 65 cents.

GDP
May 29, 8:30 a.m. EDT
The betting on Wall Street is that first-quarter GDP will be revised upward to 1.0% from the advance reading of 0.6% released in April. Economists are predicting that growth will slow to 0.5% in the second quarter.

DELL (DELL)
May 29, 5 p.m. EDT
The computer maker saw shipments jump 21.6% in the first quarter but an overhaul of its direct-sales strategy is eating into profits. This quarter's earnings are expected to remain virtually flat, at 33 cents per share.

INDIA GDP
May 30
Results for the final quarter of the 2008 fiscal year, which ends in March, will confirm that the economy is slowing slightly in response to monetary tightening. Preliminary estimates put growth for the year at 87%, down from 9.6% in 2006-07.

PERSONAL INCOME
May 30, 8:30 a.m. EDT
Personal income is expected to rise 0.2% in April. Consumption also is forecast to have risen 0.2%.