Editor's Choice: Week of May 11, 2009

Following the May 8 announcement by the Labor Department that unemployment in April rose to 8.9% from 8.5%, initial jobless claims for the week ending May 9 will be announced on May 14. But the bigger economic news likely will be April retail sales announced by the Census Department on May 13 and April industrial production from the Federal Reserve on Friday, May 15.

In the Congress, there will be Senate hearings on May 12 on how to finance healthcare reform , and on the nomination of Cass Sunstein as the regulatory czar for the White House. On Wednesday the 13th, there’s a hearing on small business financing and entrepreneurship.