Before the Bell

Now that the Dow's above 13,000, what will Wall Street do for an encore? Right now, it looks like another rally.

Stock futures are pointing up, thanks to better-than-expected results from Ford and Apple. But this is a heavy earnings day, and yet-to-be-released financial reports could change the mood.

There's also a bevy of Fed speakers, as well as reports from the Kansas City and Chicago branches.

The dollar is broadly stronger, and U.S. Treasuries are flat.

Oil prices are down, but London Brent crude is still above $68 a barrel after Iran's chief nuclear negotiator said differences with the European Union were gradually lessening.

In other earnings news, 3M, Halliburton and cable operator Comcast reported higher profits. Earnings were down at Bristol-Myers, but the drug maker has convinced interim CEO James Cornelius to stay in the job into 2009.

Lisa Von Ahn - Editor
www.reuters.com