The Market On Tuesday

Futures are flat this morning as investors await a day filled with second quarter results from a slew of companies.

The price of a barrel of oil is up a bit as well.

I've read mostly positive predictions for the week's activity but there's usually a catch. Its surprising to see the DOW closing in on 9000.

Addendum: With Caterpillar showing strong results, futures are now significantly up. In recent history, when futures are this high up the market opens higher and the day turns into a rally.

Reuters: Futures flat ahead of busy earnings day

In one of the busiest days of the earnings schedule, bellwethers including BlackRock, Apple Inc, Yahoo, Advanced Micro Devices, Caterpillar, United Technologies, Coca-Cola and are due to report results.

Reuters: Oil creeps above $64, awaits U.S. fuel stocks data

"The market is see-sawing based on people's perception of the U.S. economy -- they don't really know if the recovery is durable, and they are trading based on available data that offers clues on the outlook..."

Addendum -

Reuters: Futures jump after strong Caterpillar results