Wall Street Braces for a Full Slate of Earnings, Amex Beat Estimates

Wall Street braces for a full slate of earnings. Among the big companies turning in their quarterly financial report cards today are General Motors (GM) - Get Report , Verizon  (VZ) - Get Report , Starbucks (SBUX) - Get Report , and Southwest Airlines (LUV) - Get Report . American Express (AXP) - Get Report  beat on both and top and bottom line helping to send the Dow Jones Industrial Average to the highest point since July. Volkswagen reportedly has reached a deal with U.S. regulators. This settlement relates to its admission that it rigged vehicles to cheat on pollution tests. The automaker is said to be buying back cars from owners but its unclear what the payments would be. The settlement is expected to cost Volkswagen billions of dollars. The International Energy Agency is making a bold call on oil. The chief of IEA said declining oil prices are expected to rebound at the end of this year or early next year, helped by growing demand from China and India.