Microsoft’s Bing Off to Strong Start; U.S. Natural Gas Reserves Higher Than Once Thought; Carnival Cruise Lines Beats the Street; Treasuries Fall Again; GE Capital May Come Under Fed Scrutiny; Mexico’s Tourism Plummets on Swine Flu Scare; Discover Profits Down

On May 15, 2009, the Internet changed forever. Did you miss it?

Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) is expected to unveil its new Internet search engine to the public next week, an attempt by the software heavyweight to grab back some of the Internet search market from behemoth Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG).

I first realized satellite imagery was going to be a hit when it came to the world of fishing. Thanks to innovative companies like Digital Globe, the same kind of technology the government uses to spy on its enemies helps guys like me catch more fish.

When it comes to the U.S. stock market right now, the story continues to be about earnings. And this week will be no exception.

Since sinking to a 12-year low of 676.53 on March 9, the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index had risen 24% — the best such short-term rally since 1933. But this isn’t 1933 and you shouldn’t trust the rally. Happy Days are NOT here again, at least not yet.

Tomorrow night after the market closes Google will report their 2009 first-quarter earnings. Looking at the estimates, it almost seems as if the market is doing everything possible to help Google beat estimates. But has the bar been lowered enough? Let’s take a look.

This promises to be a very busy week with a full calendar of economic reports and earnings announcements, so let’s dive right in and highlight some of the more important ones.

Corporate earnings will take center stage again this week as certain financials hope to follow last week’s upbeat announcement by banking giant Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) with some decent earnings reports of their own.