With Hurricane Sandy posing a threat to cause substantial damage from the entire Eastern Coast all the way to the Great Lakes, several companies have made a decision to delay reporting their quarterly earnings that have been due for release this week as the financial markets temporarily shut down.

A few of these companies are Pfizer Inc. (PFE), NRG Energy Inc (NRG), and Thomson Reuters (TRE). The U.S. stock markets that have closed on this rare Monday include the NYSE, NASDAQ and the CME Group in Chicago. All these companies have cited issues regarding the market's capability to operate without any form of interruption as well as the safety of those who work there.

Trading has seldom been halted due to bad weather. The last weather-related shut down was on September 27, 1985 due to Hurricane Gloria and it's even possible that this may or possible exceed the longest trading suspension which lasted four days after the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks.

Towns and cities throughout the entire Northeastern region have cancelled schools and some establishments in anticipation of the superstorm that's threatening to bring heavy rain, strong winds, flash flooding, and snow.

Hurricane Sandy is predicted to make landfall within the mid-Atlantic coast either late this afternoon or early Tuesday, probably in New Jersey, and is expected to collide with a wintry storm that's moving in coming from the west with cold air flowing down from the arctic.