• Alphabet reported third-quarter earnings results.
• Consumer confidence is up.
• Auto industry experts are preparing for all outcomes in the election

Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:

1. Tech watch

The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.78% and hit a new high Tuesday as tech shares picked up steam. The S&P 500, meanwhile, added 0.16%, while, the Dow Jones Industrial Average didn't fare as well, falling 154.52 points, or 0.36%. Investors will continue watching earnings, as major tech companies Meta Platforms and Microsoft are set to report on Wednesday, while Apple and Amazon are coming up Thursday. Alphabet shares rose more than 5% in premarket trading Wednesday after strong earnings. Follow live market updates.

2. On cloud nine

Google parent Alphabet reported third-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street's expectations on Tuesday. The tech giant also saw strong revenue growth of $11.35 billion from its cloud unit, an increase of nearly 35% from last year. Meanwhile, Google's search business, which Alphabet Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi said remains the company's biggest revenue driver, generated $49.4 billion in revenue, an increase of 12.3% from the same period in 2023.

3. Consumer confidence

Consumers are feeling more confident about the U.S. economy. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index for October climbed more than 11%, its biggest one-month jump since March 2021. At a reading of 138, the index is much higher than the sub-80 level that indicates a recession. But a separate report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, also released Tuesday, showed that job openings fell to the lowest level since January 2021. There were 7.44 million job openings in September, off by more than 400,000 from the previous month's downwardly revised level and below Wall Street expectations.

4. Chipotle stock dips

Chipotle shares fell roughly 7% in premarket trading Wednesday after the burrito chain reported mixed quarterly results. The company's earnings beat expectations, but revenue fell short. Chipotle also reported same-store sales growth of 6%, which was slightly less than the 6.3% analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. It was the company's first earnings report since former CEO Brian Niccol left for Starbucks.

5. Auto focus

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have spent a lot of time campaigning in Michigan, hoping to win over the swing state — and the auto industry. Auto executives and lobbyists told CNBC's Michael Wayland that they're preparing for all outcomes in the election, including the possibility of a divided Congress. The auto industry is focused on how Harris and Trump's policies will affect electric vehicles, trade, tariffs, China, emissions regulations and labor. Read more about what they expect from each candidate here.

— CNBC's Hakyung Kim, Jeff Cox, Jennifer Elias, Amelia Lucas and Michael Wayland contributed to this report.