This week, many big banks report earnings. They include JPMorgan (JPM), Goldman Sachs (GS), Bank of America (BAC) and Wells Fargo (WFC), all of which can provide us a glimpse of the financial health of America.
Other large companies that can give us info about how Americans are spending and traveling include Netflix (NFLX), General Electric (GE) and Marriott (MAR), all of which also report results this week.
Strong earnings across the board would be a good sign for the economy and investors. But don't get too jazzed up yet. Seven out of 10 S&P 500 sectors are down so far this year. Third quarter earnings are projected to be down 5.5% from a year ago, according to FactSet.
Transportation and energy stocks, weighed down by low oil prices, are still registering double-digit losses this year compared to last. Health care, telecommunication, materials and industrial companies were also in the red for the year as of Friday.
