SELF IMPROVEMENT

Investors are hoping for some stability after a manic trading week that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average down by more than 600 points one day and up by more than 400 points the next. Whether the market will be able to find its footing in the coming week will depend on economic data and news from Europe. The past week got off to a rocky start as global markets reacted to an unprecedented downgrade of the U.S.'s credit rating by Standard & Poor's, from triple-A to double-A-plus. The Dow plunged 635 points on Monday in the sixth-biggest decline in its history. Stocks proceeded to whipsaw throughout the week as the Federal Reserve downgraded its outlook for the U.S. economy and said it would keep key interest rates near zero for at least another two years. European contagion concerns also came back into the mix as a rumor spurred fears that France may be the next country to lose its triple-A rating. The rumor turned out to be unfounded, but markets market were rattled nonetheless. By Friday, volatility eased and fundamentals appeared to be coming back into the market, according to Frank Fantozzi, CEO of Planned Financial Services, who is anticipating calmer action next week. "It should be a quiet week," Fantozzi said. "From an economic data standpoint, this will be a lighter week than normal, and there's not a lot coming up that's going to rattle the . The one wild card is Europe." The European sovereign debt crisis will take the spotlight on Tuesday when French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel meet in Paris to discuss options to stabilize the eurozone. Investors are hoping that the emergency meeting will yield a substantive plan, which could alleviate contagion fears and return the focus to U.S. economic data.