Today's Market News & Events: 10/12/2020

The week starts slow on Monday, October 12, with no economic data or earnings scheduled for the Columbus Day holiday. As a friendly reminder, the U.S. markets are open for a normal trading session on Columbus Day. Although it's a bank holiday and technically a federal holiday, the stock market kicks off at 9:30 a.m. EST and the closing bell will ring at 4:00 p.m. EST. And the market will be moving with speculations about earnings season kicking off, the continued battle for a second stimulus from D.C., and much more.

You can also always our 5-Minute Market Rundown every Saturday morning if you're miss a few days in the market or you just want to begin prepping for the coming week. No need to wait until Monday morning any longer because we will deliver this weekly market recap straight to your inbox on Saturday mornings!

Last week was truly a testament to how U.S. President Trump's tweets affect the stock market, as stocks saw massive swings based on his coronavirus recovery tweets as well as stimulus update tweets. As negotiations on the second stimulus package continue, we will continue to see investors reacting to the potential outcomes. 

All three major market benchmarks closed higher for the week last week, with the Dow finishing the week with its best week since August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 28,586.90) added 3.3% for the week. The Nasdaq scored its best week since May, ticking up 4.6% for the week. The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 3,477.14) had its best week since June, up 3.8% for the week. Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 25.00) lost 9.5% for the week.

Here's a quick run-through of our most popular posts from last week to get you completely ready to roll by the opening bell today:

• The biggest headline last week in the cannabis sector was Kamala Harris' pledge to decriminalize marijuana in the U.S.
• This gaming stock is perfectly set to surge even higher in the coming week
• These two real estate stocks are long-overdue for upgrades
• Bull notes came out and this chip stock hit a new high last week along with raised guidance
• Mizuho initiated coverage with a "buy" rating, triggering this WFH stock
• This luxury stock is slowly making a comeback and value investors should check it out

There are currently no notable earnings announcements today, October 12, but tomorrow is sure to be full to the brim with earnings announcements from a ton of big names, all currently slated to release their reports before the opening bell on Tuesday. So, make sure to stay tuned.

All earnings and economic dates listed below are tentative and subject to change. Please check with each company's respective website for official reporting dates.