• The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average are on six-week winning streaks, as both closed at record highs Friday.
• About one-fifth of the S&P 500 reports earnings this week, and major companies reporting include Tesla, General Motors, American Airlines, UPS, Coca-Cola, AT&T and Verizon.
• Boeing, which also will post results this week, and its machinists union reached a new contract proposal that could end a strike that has lasted more than a month.

Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:

1. Can stocks keep rising?

U.S. stocks have carved out a winning streak. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average have posted six straight positive weeks. Both indexes closed at record highs on Friday. A busy week of earnings, along with the approaching presidential election, will help to determine where stocks go in the days ahead. Follow live market updates.

2. Earnings in transit

Earnings season is picking up, as about one-fifth of the S&P 500 will post results this week. With 14% of the S&P reporting as of Friday, both earnings and revenue had climbed 4% from the year-ago quarter. Stocks tied to transportation will dominate the week, led by Tesla, General Motors and Boeing. Here are the major reports to watch:

• Tuesday: General Motors, Lockheed Martin, Verizon (before the bell)
• Wednesday: AT&T, Coca-Cola, Boeing (before the bell); Tesla, IBM (after the bell)
• Thursday: UPS, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines (before the bell)

3. End in sight

Boeing is expected to report dismal results, due in part to a machinist strike that has halted aircraft production. The work stoppage could soon end. The company and its machinist union reached a deal on a new contract proposal, which workers will have to ratify in a vote expected Wednesday. The deal includes 35% pay increases over four years, a higher signing bonus of $7,000 and higher 401(k) contributions, among other measures. The strike has gone on for more than a month. Boeing, already mired in crisis after a door plug blew out on a plane earlier this year, said earlier this month that it expects to report a deep loss, and announced it would cut 10% of its workforce.

4. The 2024 stakes

U.S. Election Day is just over two weeks away. Polling suggests a tight race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump in the handful of states that will determine the Electoral College winner. As the candidates make their final pitches to voters, CNBC has taken a look at how their platforms will affect consumers and companies. This weekend, CNBC assessed how both candidates would handle the popular and critical Social Security program, along with drug prices, insurance coverage and abortion in the U.S.

5. Carrying the torch

The New York Liberty won their first WNBA championship on Sunday night, capping a year of torrid growth for the league. The Liberty topped the Minnesota Lynx in overtime in the deciding fifth game, ending a tight series marked by large comebacks and last-second shots. The championship ended a season where viewership and attendance soared to more than two-decade highs, and the league inked a new 11-year $2.2 billion, media rights deal. The WNBA has a busy stretch ahead: the expansion Golden State Valkyries will join the league next year, a season when the league will add four regular season games and expand its finals to a best-of-seven format. Another deadline looms, as the WNBA players union and league have until Nov. 1 to opt out of their current collective bargaining agreement and potentially seek a new deal that would increase salaries.

– CNBC's Sarah Min, Robert Hum, Leslie Josephs, Lorie Konish and Annika Kim Constantino contributed to this report.