Tuesday Morning Business Brief

A late surge Monday helped Wall Street avoid a negative showing for the key averages. The Dow gained 2 points to 13,346. The S&P 500 rose a fraction to 1,434, while the Nasdaq composite index was up 11 points to 3,017. Futures trading suggest a negative opening.

• International stock markets stalled today after disappointing U.S. corporate earnings dimmed optimism about the world's No. 1 economy ahead of key data later in the week. European shares fell in early trading and the picture was a bit mixed in Asia. The dollar gained against the euro but fell against the yen.
• The expected message from the Federal Reserve during its two-day policy meeting this week is 'give it time.' No major announcements are expected as the Fed takes a wait-and-see attitude toward an economy-boosting plan announced at its last meeting that includes purchasing mortgage bonds and keeping short-term interest rates at record lows.
• Apple today is expected to unveil the newest addition to the iPad family. The smaller iPad is expected to be about half the size of the other models, while a bigger question involves the price tag.
• Some closely watched earnings reports from technology firms are due today. Facebook delivers its second earnings report as a publicly-traded company after the closing bell on Wall Street. Results are also due from Netflix.

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