Sour Earnings News Expected to Continue

With the U.S. stock markets closed today in observance of Presidents Day and with little economic data on the calendar, the direction of equities this week will be dictated by corporate earnings. And the gloomy parade is expected to continue, after sour predictions last week from tech giants Nortel Networks Corp. and Hewlett-Packard Co. Retailers dominate the quarterly earnings announcements this week, with bottom-line news expected Tuesday from Home Depot Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Last month, Home Depot, the No. 1 home-improvement retailer, announced it would miss earnings estimates for its fiscal fourth quarter as the effects of the slowing U.S. economy hampered sales. Wednesday, announcements are expected from Brocade Communications Systems Inc., Health Net Inc., GlaxoSmithKline and Stamps.com. Thursday, J.C. Penney Co., Nordstrom Inc. and RadioShack Corp. are set to release their quarterly earnings.