Data Due on Home Sales and Mood of Consumers

There are only a few economic reports coming out in this holiday-shortened week, and none of them have the potential to ignite a major move on Wall Street. However, with little else to trade on, those reports could provide a little volatility.

On Wednesday, the Conference Board will release its consumer confidence index for December, which is expected to come in at 102, up from a 98.9 reading in November.

And the National Assn. of Realtors will release its November home sales report Thursday. Sales were expected to decrease to an annualized 7 million homes, down from 7.09 million in October.

No major -- or even minor -- publicly traded companies are slated to release their earnings during the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

However, holiday weeks like this are often used by companies to release bad news in the belief that the effect on their stock prices will be lessened by the fact that few people are paying attention.

So expect at least a few companies to warn that sales are low, expenses are up or profit forecasts are being reduced.

In addition, the retail sector could see some trading as holiday sales figures are tabulated. A generally strong season could push stocks higher, and a few retailers could take the opportunity to brag about a great season -- or warn of disappointment ahead.