The U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement Tuesday afternoon will be the big economic event next week. The central bank is widely expected to boost its federal funds rate to 1.75%.

In Canada, Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge will disclose his views on recent economic developments Monday afternoon when he delivers a speech to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Calgary on Canadian monetary policy in an evolving world.

Monday also brings Canadian wholesale trade figures for July.

Finance Minister Ralph Goodale follows Dodge addressing the Calgary group Tuesday afternoon, explaining the federal government’s key spending priorities and how it will finance them while maintaining a balanced budget.

Also on deck for Tuesday are Canadian retail sales for July, which are expected to rise 0.4% after a modest gain in June.

South of the border, the Fed decision on rates will dominate the economic calendar, but there are a few other reports for investors to watch.

U.S. housing starts for August will be released Tuesday.

U.S. initial claims for unemployment benefits and the U.S. leading indicator for August are scheduled for Thursday.

Friday will bring the release of U.S. durable goods orders for August and U.S. existing home sales for August

In earnings news, North America’s biggest investment banks are poised to release their third-quarter earnings in coming days,

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. is expected to report Tuesday a 14% drop in earnings, with earnings per share falling to US$1.55 from US$1.81 a year ago, according to the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.

Goldman Sachs, however, is expected to report third-quarter earnings per share of $1.42 compared with $1.32 a year ago, a gain of 8%.

Wednesday sees the release of earnings from Bear Stearns Co. and Morgan Stanley. They are expected to report profit declines of 14% and 17% respectively.