Apple earnings, real estate on docket

Earnings will dominate the calendar today, with Apple's report after the bell the most prominent name on the list.

The only scheduled U.S. economic data involves residential real estate. The Mortgage Bankers Association reports weekly loan applications at 7 a.m. ET, followed at 9 a.m. by the FHFA Housing Price Index for November. Neither is likely to have a big impact on sentiment.

Companies including Abbott Laboratories, General Dynamics, and Textron will report earnings before the bell. In addition to AAPL, after-market releases will come from SanDisk, Lam Research, and Western Digital.

Also in the evening, the January reading for China's HSBC manufacturing purchasing managers index will be released. That could affect sentiment, especially toward commodities and emerging markets.

More From optionMONSTER

• Earnings, global data on the calendar
  

• VIX up slightly as stocks end day flat