Market participants will face a heavy flow of data on Friday, February 27, 2026, with a focus on producer-side inflation readings that could shed light on price pressures before they filter through to consumers. The Producer Price Index (PPI) and associated measures headline a calendar that includes regional activity surveys, construction spending, GDP tracking, drilling rig counts and a broad set of weekly speculative-position reports.
Key timing and headline inflation data
The most closely watched item arrives at 8:30 AM ET when the February PPI is released. The consensus forecast calls for a monthly increase of 0.3%, down from the previous month’s 0.5%. This series measures changes in prices received by producers for goods they sell and is often viewed as an advance indicator for consumer inflation.
At the same 8:30 AM ET slot the core PPI - which strips out food and energy - is also scheduled. The forecast for core PPI (Feb) is 0.3%, versus a prior 0.7%. This core measure is monitored for signs of pressures that may be passed along to consumers once producers adjust final prices.
Additional scheduled releases throughout the day
- 9:45 AM ET - Chicago PMI (Feb): Forecast 52.2, Previous 54.0. This reading gauges manufacturing conditions in the Chicago region, where values above 50 indicate expansion.
- 10:00 AM ET - Construction Spending (Jan): Forecast 0.2%, Previous 0.5%. This release measures nationwide changes in spending on construction projects.
- 11:30 AM ET - Atlanta Fed GDPNow: Forecast 3.1%, Previous 3.1%. The GDPNow series provides a running estimate of real GDP growth for the current quarter based on available data.
- 1:00 PM ET - Baker Hughes U.S. Rig Count: Previous 409. Tracks the number of active oil drilling rigs in the United States, often cited as an indicator of near-term demand for oil-related services and equipment.
- 1:00 PM ET - U.S. Baker Hughes Total Rig Count: Previous 551. Measures total active drilling rigs operating in the U.S.
Weekly CFTC commitments and commodity positioning
At 3:30 PM ET the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) releases a suite of weekly reports that provide the net speculative positions across a wide set of futures markets. Previous figures for these series are listed below and will be updated with the new weekly snapshots:
- CFTC S&P 500 speculative positions: Previous -177.8K
- CFTC Nasdaq 100 speculative positions: Previous 24.4K
- CFTC Crude Oil speculative positions: Previous 141.3K
- CFTC Gold speculative positions: Previous 159.9K
- CFTC Soybeans speculative positions: Previous 191.8K
- CFTC Corn speculative positions: Previous -7.8K
- CFTC Wheat speculative positions: Previous -55.1K
- CFTC Natural Gas speculative positions: Previous -185.8K
- CFTC Silver speculative positions: Previous 24.0K
- CFTC Copper speculative positions: Previous 59.3K
- CFTC Aluminium speculative net positions: Previous -2.7K
Supplementary PPI metrics on the calendar
Alongside the headline and core monthly readings, additional producer-price measures scheduled at 8:30 AM ET include year-over-year and trimmed series items. The forecasts and prior readings for these series as shown on the calendar are:
- Core PPI (YoY): Forecast 3.0%, Previous 3.3%.
- PPI ex. Food/Energy/Trade (MoM): Previous 0.4%.
- PPI ex. Food/Energy/Trade (YoY): Previous 3.5%.
- PPI (YoY): Forecast 2.6%, Previous 3.0%.
What markets will be watching
Traders and analysts will parse the PPI and core PPI prints for signs of either easing or persistent inflationary pressure at the producer level. The suite of CFTC position reports will update the community on speculative exposure across equity and commodity futures, while the Baker Hughes rig counts provide a point-in-time view of drilling activity. Regional manufacturing health via the Chicago PMI and investment trends via construction spending are additional data points that could influence intraday market narratives.
How the calendar reads for sectors
- Manufacturing - the Chicago PMI and PPI measures feed directly into assessments of cost pressures and activity.
- Energy and commodities - Baker Hughes rig counts and CFTC crude, natural gas and metals position reports offer signals on demand and speculative flows.
- Construction and materials - the construction spending print provides data relevant to construction activity, materials demand and related supply chains.
- Financial markets - the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 speculative position reports can influence risk sentiment and futures flows.
Final notes
Friday’s schedule concentrates several inflation measures and weekly positioning reports into a single trading day. Market participants will weigh these releases as fresh inputs to short-term risk assessments and to gauge the evolution of pricing pressures in the U.S. economy.