There are two big news events this week—the midterm elections on Tuesday and the FOMC meeting that concludes Wednesday—but it's unclear if the markets have already priced in a Republican election victory and the Fed deciding to embrace a relatively modest QE2.
Greg Valliere, Liz Ann Sonders and Condoleezza Rice all spoke about politics and the markets last week during the Schwab Impact 2010 conference in Boston. We also see the tail end of earnings season, and interest rate decisions by the European Central Bank and the Bank of England.
Monday, Nov. 1 brought the release by the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) of its October manufacturing index, which showed a continued uptick in manufacturing. Reports are also due on personal income and spending as well as construction spending for September. Principal Financial will release quarterly results after the market closes on Monday.
Tuesday, Nov. 2 is midterm Election Day across the nation. Among firms announcing quarterly earnings is NYSE Euronext and The Hartford in the morning, while the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) begins the first of two days of meetings. The WTO and the World Bank will conduct a public seminar on the effects of the Doha round of trade talks.