Earnings season will kick off after the closing bell when the first Dow company to report earnings, Alcoa, releases its results.
And the Detroit auto show is underway. Domestic car companies have seen strong sales in the last year, a big comeback from the industry's meltdown 3 years ago. Analysts expect auto sales to be up between 4 and 9 percent this year- the third consecutive gain. That said the competition at the auto show is expected to be fierce- with Japanese rivals coming back and Hyundai and Volkswagen gathering steam.
And politics is paying off- for local television stations. Forecasters expect spending on political advertisements to increase up to 30 percent this year compared to 2008- setting a new record.
Bobbi Rebell, Reuters.