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TORONTO -- The Bank of Canada's latest rate announcement, along with a number of other key economic indicators, will be front and centre this week for the Toronto and U.S. markets.

Bank governor Mark Carney is widely expected to keep the central bank's trend-setting rate at one per cent, but Danielle Park, president and portfolio manager with Venable Park Investment Counsel, said investors will look for hints on when a rate cut or hike may come.

"I think he's going to acknowledge that the Canadian data continues to disappoint. I think he's going to want to sort of back out of expectations that they may be hiking in the not too distance future," Park said.

"I think they're definitely on hold mode at this point and, if anything, they may signal that there might be a willingness to cut rates at some stage if the global trend continues this way."

It will be Carney's last rate announcement before he leaves the Bank of Canada for the top job at the Bank of England. He will be replaced by outgoing Export Development head Stephen Poloz.

There will also be an abundance of data slated for release from Statistics Canada this week.

The agency is set to release payroll employment figures, industrial product and raw materials indexes and, of particular interest, the first-quarter read on gross domestic product.

Analysts expect that the GDP data will show growth in the first part of 2013, supported by gains in the retail, wholesale and factory sectors.

In corporate news, the last of Canada's big banks are expected to report second-quarter results.

Scotiabank (TSX:BNS) reports Tuesday, Bank of Montreal (TSX:BMO) on Wednesday and Royal Bank (TSX:RY) and CIBC (TSX:CM) on Thursday.

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Mark Carney's last word on interest rates and other market movers to watch this week