Profits from Home Depot, Alibaba, Walmart

“The more Fed officials entertain us with their hawkish comments, as long as they keep us on the edge of our seats, the more likely it is that the Fed will be able to cut interest rates in the not-too-distant future,” Cramer said. “The more we hear from these hawkish officials, the worse the economy will get, and in the end we will all win because the Fed needs a weak economy before it can cut interest rates.”

On Tuesday, Cramer will focus on quarterly results from Home Depot, and said he hopes the retailer will report some price declines, as consumers want companies that fight inflation. Alibaba also mentioned that day, and Cramer said that if the quarter was good, Wall Street might be more inclined to buy Chinese stocks. After the close of trading that day, a report came from Nextracker, and Cramer said he expected the solar technology company to deliver good numbers.

The influential CPI will be released on Wednesday, and Cramer said he thinks it will show weakness. Cisco will report earnings that day, and he said it would be “embarrassing” if the company didn’t provide a positive outlook, as management should be able to speak to the momentum of Splunk, the recently acquired data mining company.

Thursday brings earnings from Walmart, Deere and Applied Materials. Cramer said Wal-Mart shares could rise if it announces a decline in prices. He added that Applied Materials could have a strong quarter as its Taiwanese semiconductor counterpart issued a positive sales report. Cramer will also pay attention to analyst meetings from Cracker Barrel and Dow.