From Reuters.com
The day ahead: Thursday
Wal-Mart sales numbers will hold the spotlight along with results from Walt Disney and Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Highlights:
* Wal-Mart is expected to report higher third-quarter earnings, but Wall Street is focused on U.S. sales, which the retailer has stopped reporting on a monthly basis.
* Walt Disney is expected to report earnings of 41 cents per share and further emphasize a recovery in advertising sales seen at the cable networks of competitors Time Warner and Viacom.
* Anheuser-Busch InBev is braced to report a decline in consumption of its beers such as Budweiser, Stella Artois and Beck’s, weighing on profits in the first half.
The day ahead: Friday
The stock market may get a boost from consumer sentiment data, which is expected to be higher from the “cash-for-clunkers” program.
* The Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary reading of consumer sentiment for September is due at 9:55 a.m. EDT.
