NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Stocks started the month with a bang but it's been pretty much downhill from there, and analysts say it's unlikely to get much better until after the presidential election.

The major gauges have tumbled for two weeks straight, with investors worried about rising oil prices, the economy and the election, as well as some disappointing corporate and earnings news.

"We had a big gain on the first day of the quarter, but that was too much too fast and the market hasn't been able to hang onto it," said David Briggs, head of equity trading at Federated Investors.

"I think stocks are going to remain vulnerable for the next few weeks with people waiting around for the election," he added.

Voters choose between President Bush and Sen. John Kerry on Nov. 2 -- and we may know the outcome the following morning. Then again, if 2000 is any guide -- and this year's race looks just as tight -- we may not.

Ahead of that, investors will have plenty to focus on, particularly earnings.

Last week brought the first big batch of corporate earnings and the first big batch of high-profile misses, including General Motors (Research) on Thursday. GM's miss was unsettling because its woes could point to broader economic weakness.

Even so, overall results have been fairly strong.

Of the 77 S&P 500 companies reporting as of Oct. 15, 66 percent had beaten estimates, 21 percent had met estimates and 13 percent had missed, according to Thomson/First Call.

That's in line with the historic average, said First Call research analyst Mark Mousseau.

Analysts surveyed by First Call expect third-quarter earnings to rise 13.9 percent year-over-year. That's a number that has been modestly -- but steadily -- rising for the past 10 days.

Actual earnings tend to trend higher than expected earnings, according to First Call, so their analysts expect earnings to ultimately rise about 17 percent for the quarter.

This week brings results from 179 companies in the S&P 500, including Microsoft, Google, Merck and Amazon.com. For a closer look at 11 of the key reports, click here.

The economic calendar is light, with readings consumer prices and leading economic indicators. (For a look at the week's key events, click here.)

Granted, $55 oil is going to put a crimp on things, but what stocks have going in their favor in the next few weeks is history, both recent and not so recent.

From a technical perspective, after declining for a few weeks, markets are at a place where they may have gotten "oversold," said John Hughes, market analyst at Shields & Co.

YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS Department of Labor (DOL) Earnings GM Economic Indicators or Create your own Manage alerts | What is this?

Stocks have fallen for two weeks, but did manage to close higher Friday. That may represent the start of a short-term bounce.

"From a technical standpoint, we're at a place where we could see a short-term advance, as long as the numbers going forward aren't ridiculously awful," Hughes added.

"However, we do have a lot of earnings news to get through so it could be a little rocky in there," he added.

If tradition is any indication, October should end up fairly flat overall. Once one of the worst months of the year for the market, October's rep has improved of late.

For years it was known as being something of a jinx month, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac, because it housed the crash in 1929 and a number of famous market plunges in subsequent years.

But more recently, Octobers have seen declines early but then rebounds near the end of the month, netting it the reputation of being something of a "bear killer."

On average, its good for gains of about 0.8 percent on the S&P, according to Stock Trader's Almanac.

Octobers in election years, however, are an exception -- the market tends to gyrate and ultimately end the month little changed.

• IBM reports results Monday morning. The No. 1 computer maker is expected to have earned $1.14 a share, up from $1.02 a year ago.
• A report on housing Tuesday is expected to show modest declines. Housing starts likely fell to a 1.95 million unit annual rate in September from a 2 million unit rate in August, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. Building permits probably fell to a 1.948 million unit rate from a 1.969 million unit rate in August.
• Also on Tuesday, the Labor Department releases its consumer price index for September. CPI probably rose 0.2 percent after rising 0.1 percent in August. So called "core" CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, is also expected to have risen 0.2 percent after rising 0.1 percent in August.
• On Thursday morning, the Conference Board releases its leading economic indicators. LEI probably fell 0.1 percent in September after falling 0.3 percent in August, according to forecasts.
• Thursday also brings the Philadelphia Fed index, measuring manufacturing in three states in the mid-Atlantic region. A rise of 19.2 in October from 13.4 in September is expected.
• Thursday evening brings earnings from Microsoft. The company is expected to have earned 30 cents a share, unchanged from a year earlier. Google's first report as a public company is also due Thursday.