by Laura Conaway

Welcome to July, and a week of waiting for the latest lab reports on the economy.

The June figures on manufacturing are due in later today, from the Institute on Supply Management. The Wall Street Journal picks apart the consensus forecast — still shrinking, but more slowly — and says we've still got inventory to burn before factories crank into gear again.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the June unemployment figure on Thursday. Meanwhile, the private ADP payroll report shows the U.S. job market shedding 473,000 gigs in June. With an average loss of 492,000 jobs a month for the last three months, we're still falling, but more slowly.