Best week in months | Focus on earnings, stimulus talks ahead | Cramer's plan for the week

Earnings roll out in the week ahead, with a burst of bank earnings, and that could be a positive force for markets.

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE SAT, OCT 10, 2020 WEEKEND BRIEF EDITOR'S NOTE Wall Street was primarily focused on a singular issue last week as it posted its biggest weekly advance in months: fiscal stimulus.   The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose 3.8% and 4.6%, respectively, last week and posted their best weekly performance since early July. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 3.3% over that time period, notching its best weekly gain since August.   Those gains came as optimism grew over the possibility of a fiscal aid package being passed before the election. On Friday, President Donald Trump said he wanted "a bigger stimulus package frankly than either the Democrats or Republicans are offering." He also tweeted that relief negotiations were "moving along."   To be sure, those comments came after Trump briefly called off stimulus talks on Tuesday and then suggested pushing through a smaller aid bill. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected that idea.   "Stimulus talks are really dictating the market action on a day-to-day basis," said Keith Buchanan, portfolio manager at GLOBALT. Buchanan noted that the recent rhetoric indicates some progress in the negotiations, but added it is key for Washington to move "quickly" on the matter to "relieve the pressure that the economy is under."   Heading into the new week, investors will also contend with the start of the corporate earnings season as the major banks get set to report. JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are among the companies scheduled to post their results.     Subscribe to CNBC PRO for exclusive insights and analysis, and live business day programming from around the world. Fred Imbert | CNBC Markets Reporter @foimbert THE WEEK AHEAD Earnings could be a positive force for stocks as Washington continues to wrangle over stimulus   ACTIVIST SPOTLIGHT Deciphering what Nelson Peltz is up to with his big moves in the investment management space   YOUR WEEKEND BRIEFING  Cramer's week ahead: Too much complacency about a stimulus deal A look at contested elections and what they mean for markets Delta adds insult to injury in hurricane-ravaged Louisiana Second presidential debate between Biden, Trump officially canceled Wall Street analysts are gaining more confidence in stocks like Procter & Gamble and Papa John's Tight race between Joni Ernst and Theresa Greenfield in Iowa could determine balance of power in the Senate Robinhood says some customer accounts may have become target of hackers     Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2020 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS