All eyes on economic data, G-20, Gulf crisis as stocks hit record high

LAST week, US stocks rose to near records as threats of economic and military conflict were eclipsed by promises of assistance from the world's largest central banks.

This week, a pause seems likely as investors seek clues from economic data, the Group of 20 meeting in Japan and the US-Iran crisis whether that assistance will be needed.

First, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi and then Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell gave explicit reassurances to investors of stocks and bonds, saying they are willing to cut interest rates if economic data continued to weaken.