Markets enter Wednesday, February 18, 2026 with a sequence of headline U.S. releases that are likely to draw close attention from investors and strategists. At the forefront are January building permits and housing starts, January durable goods orders, and the written record of the Federal Open Market Committee's most recent policy meeting. Together, these data points will provide contemporaneous readings on residential construction, factory orders for long-lived goods and the Fed's internal assessment of economic conditions.
Major economic events to monitor
- 8:30 AM ET - Building Permits (Jan): Expected at 1.400M versus previous 1.411M. This indicator records new building permit issuances and is used as a gauge of demand for residential construction.
- 8:30 AM ET - Durable Goods Orders (Jan): Forecast at -1.7% compared to the prior month's 5.3% reading. The durable goods report measures changes in orders for manufactured products intended to last at least three years and offers a snapshot of manufacturing-sector demand.
- 2:00 PM ET - FOMC Meeting Minutes: The published minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's most recent meeting will reveal participants' discussions on the appropriate path for monetary policy, inflation risks and the economic outlook.
Broader slate of releases and timings
Alongside the marquee releases above, several ancillary reports and events will provide finer detail about production, investment and capital flows across the economy. The full schedule for the day is listed below with expected readings or prior figures where available.
- 8:30 AM ET - Core Durable Goods Orders (Jan): Expected at 0.3% versus previous 0.4%. This series strips out volatile transportation items to reveal underlying trends in durable goods orders.
- 8:30 AM ET - Housing Starts (Jan): Forecast at 1.310M compared to previous 1.246M. Housing starts count new residential construction projects that begin in the month.
- 8:30 AM ET - Building Permits (MoM) (Jan): Expected at -0.2% versus previous -0.3%. This month-over-month change in permit issuance signals near-term construction activity.
- 8:30 AM ET - Housing Starts (MoM) (Jan): Previous reading was -4.6%. This metric tracks the monthly change in newly started residential construction.
- 9:15 AM ET - Industrial Production (MoM) (Jan): Forecast at 0.4%, matching the prior month. This series measures output changes across manufacturers, mines and utilities.
- 9:15 AM ET - Industrial Production (YoY) (Jan): Previous reading was 1.99%.
- 11:00 AM ET - Atlanta Fed GDPNow (Q1): Expected at 3.7%, unchanged from the prior estimate. The GDPNow model provides a running estimate of real GDP growth for the quarter based on available data.
- 1:00 PM ET - 20-Year Bond Auction: Previous yield was 4.846%. The auction result will provide another data point on investor demand for longer-term Treasury debt.
- 1:00 PM ET - FOMC Member Bowman Speaks: Remarks from Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman may offer incremental insight into views expressed by policymakers.
- 4:00 PM ET - TIC Net Long-Term Transactions (Dec): Previous reading was 220.2B. This metric captures foreign investment flows into U.S. long-term securities.
- 4:30 PM ET - API Weekly Crude Stock (Feb 14): Previous reading showed a build of 13.400M barrels. The American Petroleum Institute's weekly report gives a preliminary indication of U.S. crude inventory changes.
Additional scheduled indicators
- 7:00 AM ET - MBA 30-Year Mortgage Rate (Feb 14): Previous rate was 6.21%.
- 7:00 AM ET - MBA Mortgage Applications (Feb 14): Previous reading was -0.3%.
- 7:00 AM ET - MBA Mortgage Market Index (Feb 14): Previous reading was 329.9.
- 7:00 AM ET - MBA Purchase Index (Feb 14): Previous reading was 161.5.
- 7:00 AM ET - Mortgage Refinance Index (Feb 14): Previous reading was 1,284.6.
- 8:30 AM ET - Durables Excluding Transport (Jan): Expected at 0.3% versus previous 0.4%.
- 8:30 AM ET - Durables Excluding Defense (Jan): Previous reading was 6.5%.
- 8:30 AM ET - Goods Orders Non Defense Ex Air (Jan): Forecast at 0.5% compared to previous 0.4%. This core capital goods measure is closely watched as an indicator of business investment.
- 8:55 AM ET - Redbook (YoY) (Feb 14): Previous reading was 6.5%. The Redbook series tracks year-over-year same-store sales growth at large U.S. retailers.
- 9:15 AM ET - Capacity Utilization Rate (Jan): Expected at 76.5% versus previous 76.3%.
- 9:15 AM ET - Manufacturing Output (Jan): Forecast at 0.4% compared to previous 0.2%.
- 4:00 PM ET - Foreign Buying, T-bonds (Dec): Previous reading was 85.60B.
- 4:00 PM ET - Overall Net Capital Flow (Dec): Previous reading was 212.00B.
- 4:00 PM ET - TIC Net Long-Term Transactions including Swaps (Dec): Forecast at 128.60B versus previous 220.20B.
What market participants will be watching
Wednesday's housing data - building permits and housing starts - will be used as proximate measures of demand and pipeline activity in residential construction. Analysts typically track the permit series for signs of future starts, and the month-over-month permit change is presented here with a forecasted slight decline of -0.2% following a prior -0.3% reading.
The durable goods suite of reports - headline orders, core orders excluding transportation and related capital goods measures - will inform views on manufacturing demand and business investment intentions. The consensus forecast shown here calls for a pullback in headline durable goods orders to -1.7% from a prior 5.3% gain, while core measures are expected to show modest positive prints.
The Federal Reserve's meeting minutes, scheduled for release at 2:00 PM ET, will reveal the committee's deliberations and could clarify the balance of risks discussed by policymakers. Remarks later in the day from an FOMC member are also scheduled, offering an additional opportunity for incremental policy-related insight.
Other data items through the day - industrial production, capacity utilization, the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow estimate, TIC flows and the 20-year Treasury auction - will add texture to readings on output, demand for U.S. debt and near-term growth expectations. The American Petroleum Institute's weekly crude stock release may also draw attention from oil-market participants, given its role as an early inventory indicator.
For further information and the latest updates, refer to our Economic Calendar.