Investors hope earnings reports will boost market

THIS week, investors hope earnings reports will give the stock market a boost, after a mixed bag of economic and profit reports caused a negative start to the year.

If the gains come, however, they may not be evenly distributed between sectors or between the individual stocks within sectors.

Last week, the market had an indecisive tone, as earnings and data reports failed to confirm or deny the economic scare from a weak December jobs report.