 The Day Ahead is an email and PDF publication that includes the days major stories and events, analyses and other features. To receive The Day Ahead, Eikon users can register at . Thomson One users can register at RTDAYUS. All times in ETGMT Alphabet Inc reports its first-quarter results. Wall Street is expecting top line numbers from Googles parent to be hit by a slowdown in digital ad spending due to the coronavirus outbreak. Market participants will be focusing on a two-day meeting by the U.S. Federal Reserve. In recent months, the Fed has slashed rates to near zero, restarted bond purchases and rolled out an unprecedented range of programs to keep credit flowing and shore up business and household confidence. A raft of pharma companies, including Pfizer Inc, Merck Co Inc, Centene Corp and Novartis AG are scheduled to post their first-quarter results. Pfizer is expected to provide an update on the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on its businesses. Investors would also be looking out for progress on the companys coronavirus drug development programs and details on its deal with Mylan. Mercks sales of cancer drug Keytruda are expected to remain strong despite disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Investor focus will also be on Mercks sales in international markets such as China and any changes to its full-year forecast. Investors will also focus on Centenes comments about COVID-19 related costs and possible benefits due to a decline in healthcare spending by Americans. Meanwhile, Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG is seen reporting sales rose from 11.1 billion in 2019 on the strength of skin and arthritis drug Consentyx and its heart failure medicine Entresto. Chief Executive Val Narasimhan may also update progress on testing generic hydroxychloroquine in coronavirus patients. Ford Motor Co is expected to report a first-quarter loss. The automaker will discuss efforts to shore up its cash position. The company previewed a big loss related to COVID-19 shutdowns. PepsiCo Inc is expected to report a rise in revenue for the quarter ending in March, but all eyes will be focused on any forecast the company makes about demand in the second quarter after rival Coca-Cola Co warned of sales taking a hit as restaurants, theaters and other venues closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. U.S. consumer confidence index is expected to have dropped to 87.9 in April from a reading of 120.0 in the previous month. The SP CoreLogic Case-Shiller composite index of home prices in 20 metropolitan areas is also scheduled for release. Home price growth in 20 metro areas is likely to have increased 3.3 in February from a year ago, compared with a gain of 3.1 in January. 09001300 Caterpillar Inc is scheduled to post its first quarter earnings. The heavy equipment maker is expected to report a steep drop in earnings, hurt by business disruptions caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Starbucks Corp releases its second-quarter earnings. Focus will be on the coffee chains business in China, where it was forced to close nearly all of its stores due to the coronavirus crisis earlier in the year. Several cafes in Asia are now open and investors will look for updates on the business and consumer behavior. Updates on its U.S. market, especially any comments on when stores are expected to reopen, will also be key. Yum China Holdings Inc is also scheduled to post it first-quarter results. Harley-Davidson Inc is expected to report lower first-quarter profit, hurt by the coronavirus pandemic that has forced it to temporarily suspend production in the United States. Oreo maker Mondelez International Inc is likely to post an increase in first-quarter revenue, thanks to consumers stockpiling snacks and chocolates ahead of the coronavirus-related lockdown in the United States and some European countries. Investors will be on the lookout for potential revisions to 2020 outlook and comments on demand so far in the current quarter. Xerox Holdings Corp is expected to post a drop in first-quarter revenue, hurt by weaker demand for its printers and photocopiers as more businesses digitize their work. Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices Inc is expected to post a rise in revenue for the first quarter. Investors will be on the lookout for any commentary on the economic uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on forecast. Southwest Airlines Co is scheduled to report first-quarter results that will show the initial impact of the coronavirus pandemic on earnings and travel demand, which airlines say has virtually disappeared and may not fully return before the end of the year. Wells Fargo Co shareholders will vote on a number of proposals at new CEO Charlie Scharfs first meeting at the company. The meeting has drawn large protests every year since the 2016 sales practices scandal erupted. Meanwhile, HSBC Holdings plc reports its first quarter earnings and expected to show a heavy hit from the economic impact of the new coronavirus in its twin homes of Hong Kong and London. UBS Group AG also presents its first-quarter results. Investors will be looking out for signs of how the coronavirus pandemic is likely to impact business. BP Plc reports its first quarter results which are set to be dominated by the dramatic drop in demand for energy and collapsing oil prices due to coronavirus. Other major companies, including United Parcel Service Inc and 3M Co are also scheduled to post their first-quarter results, while D.R. Horton Inc is expected to release full second-quarter results after reporting preliminary results on April 7. Canadian companies including commercial real estate service provider Colliers International Group Inc and wood products company West Fraser Timber Co Ltd are scheduled to post earnings for the first quarter. Brazils statistics agency IBGE releases mid-April IPCA-15 consumer price index. The consumer prices had increased 0.02 in the month to mid-March. Separately, Mexico is slated to release trade balance data for March. The country had posted a 1,429 million trade surplus in February when adjusted for seasonal swings. In non-seasonally adjusted terms, it posted a trade surplus of 2,911 million. LIVECHAT-FED WATCH Michael Pearce, Senior U.S. Economist, Capital Economics, speaks on expectations for the Federal Reserves upcoming meeting, the outlook for U.S. monetary policy, and whats ahead for the U.S. economy. 10001400 To join the conversation, click here Compiled by Sourav Bose in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber 