The S&P 500 is a bellwether for the American economy, and with quarterly reports for more than half of the index's companies in this earnings season, S&P 500 firms are averaging a 4.5% positive earnings per share surprise, according to Capital IQ's Earnings This Week report.
When Toyota Motor reports quarterly earnings tomorrow it will give investors the latest snapshot of how big a toll massive recalls and tepid auto sales are taking on the company's bottom line.
This is its second straight quarterly profit as it keeps gaining since emerging from bankruptcy. GM's best results were in North America.
Three months after turning in its first profit since bankruptcy, GM is expected to report even bigger profits during the second quarter when it releases its latest results on Thursday.
U.S. automaker Ford drove to a $2.6 billion profit in the second quarter, zooming past analyst expectations. Looking forward, CEO Alan Mulally said that he expects "even better financial results in 2011."
