Next Week's News Today (The Last Presidential Debate Amidst Major Earnings Announcements)

If it's Thursday, then it's time for Next Week's News Today, where we put together a futures calendar of earnings announcements, economic reports and political events for terrific news hooks to exam the economy and politics.

The calendar below has a lot of data on it, don't be overwhelmed. Here's how you can make sense of all the news hooks below:

First, on Monday the world gets to hear for the first time from the man who is in charge of the $700 billion rescue program at Treasury... Neel Kashkari - the Treasury Interim Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability. He's speaking at 8a ET, which means that will likely drive much of the markets and financial reporting throughout the day. (Click here for Treasury's press release).

Second, there are so many earnings due next week that the focus will mostly get put on well known stocks and the financial industry in order to effectively measure just how the economy is doing. That means: Charles Schwab (Monday); Intel, Johnson & Johnson, and Pepsi (Tuesday); Coke, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo (Wednesday); AMD, Capitol One, CIT Group, Citi, Continental, Google, IBM, Southwest (Thursday). (We'd read a piece looking at whether Domino's does better or worse in a tough economy, hey, we'd watch that piece too - practicaly produces itself).

Third, since a number of regional banks are due to report next week, look for coverage on the health of local banks - not just the ones reporting, but OVERALL. This is an area that deserves more coverage, and next week will offer a great news peg.

Fourth, the last presidential debate is next week (Thursday), and the focus is on the economy and domestic issues. You might think that you've heard enough from the candidates on the economy over the last two debates, but you'd be wrong to think Thursday will be more of the same. Where the prior debates had to fit in the economy along with war/terrorism, Thursday night gives Bob Schieffer the chance to really drill down on economic policy. And guess what? If I'm a candidate trailing in the polls, and I've got one last national debate where I know everyone is watching, wouldn't I use all the weapons in my quiver? That's why Thursday will be both important and interesting.

Lastly, keep a look out over the weekend and on Monday for coverage of the G7 Finance Ministers' meeting. Boring you say? Not a chance, Wall Street will be listening. The reason is the market wants stability, or the promise of stability. Today's Washington Post business page cover story had Treasury Secretary Paulson trying not to raise expectations about the meeting, but rather down playing the need to hammer out an agreement among the G7, saying what has been done is enough, and now what's needed is patience. Watch to see if that story line stays the course through Monday.

MONDAY 10/13
Earnings: Charles Schwab Corp.; Chipotle Mexican Grill; Equity Lifestyle Properties

Economic Events: Treasury Interim Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability Neel Kashkari discusses the financial markets and the economic rescue package before the Institute of International Bankers in Washington, DC.


TUESDAY 10/14
Earnings: Altera Corp.; Champion Enterprises Inc.; CSX Corp; Domino's Pizza; Genentech Inc.; Health Care Services Group Inc.; Integra Bank Corp.; Intel Corp; Johnson & Johnson; Linear Technology Corp.; PepsiCo Inc.; Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc.; Seagate Technology


WEDNESDAY 10/15
Earnings: Abbott Labs; BlackRock Inc.; Coca-Cola; Commerce Bancshares; Intersil Corp.; JP Morgan Chase; Kinder Morgan Partners; Knight Capital Group; Novellus Systems; Sovereign Banc; Steel Dynamics; WD-40 Company; Wells Fargo;

Economic Reports: Business Inventories (for August); Producer Price Index (PPI)[this measures the average change in price for domestically produced goods] (for September); Retail Sales (for September)

Politics: 2nd Presidential Debate - moderated by Bob Schieffer. Format: Where the first presidential debate was on foreign policy and national security, this debate will focus on the economy and domestic policy. Each candidate will be allowed two minutes to answer a question, followed by a five-minute discussion. The candidates will also be give two minutes for closing statements.


THURSDAY 10/16
Earnings: Advance Micro Devices; AMB Property; Bank of New York Mellon; BB&T Corp.; Capitol One Financial Corp.; CIT Group; Citigroup; Continental Airlines; Fairchild Semiconductor; Google; Hershey Foods; Huntington Bancshares; IBM; Merrill Lynch; Nokia; PNC Bank; Reliance Steel; Sherwin-Williams; Sonoco Products; Southwest Airlines; Sunpower; United Technologies; Winnebago Industries; Zions Bancorporation

Economic Reports: Consumer Price Index (CPI) (for September) [this measures the average change in what consumers paid for goods/services] ; Industrial Production (for September); Initial (unemployment) Claims


FRIDAY 10/17
Earnings: Amcol International Corp.; Comerica Inc.; Downey Financial; First Horizon; Genuine Parts; Honeywell International; NVR Inc.; Overstock.com; MB Financial; Wilmington Trust;

Economic Reports: Building Permits (for September); Housing Starts (for September)