Stocks: Apple optimism spilling over

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks were headed for early gains Wednesday as Apple's knockout results lifted the tech sector and speculation about a debt ceiling deal boosted the broader market.

Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were higher ahead of the opening bell. Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.

Nasdaq futures -- driven by Apple -- were up about 1%.

U.S. stocks surged Tuesday, with the Dow staging its strongest one-day rally of the year after President Obama indicated he would support a plan to raise the debt ceiling that had been floated by a bipartisan group of senators.

With the clock ticking, experts say it's imperative that a deal get done...and soon.

"The markets believe they will raise the debt ceiling because they have to raise the debt ceiling," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James. "I'm almost shocked they waited this long. Risking the credit of the United States is a big deal."

'Gang of Six' plan

Companies: Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) reported blowout earnings after the bell Tuesday -- hitting all-time highs with its quarterly profit and revenue, with iPhone and iPad sales. Shares were up 4% premarket.

BlackRock (BLK, Fortune 500) reported earnings of $3.00 per share on $2.35 billion in revenue Wednesday, topping analyst estimates by 12 cents.

S&P member Altria (MO, Fortune 500) reported earnings per share of 21 cents, down 58% in the second quarter. Most of the decrease was attributable to a one-time leveraged lease transaction.

After the bell, Dow components American Express (AXP, Fortune 500) and chipmaker Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) will issue their quarterly results.

Yahoo (YHOO, Fortune 500) reported second-quarter earnings Tuesday evening that met Wall Street estimates. But the company reported weakness in display and search revenue, as well as a lower-than-expected outlook. Shares were off 1.4% in premarket trading.

Real estate site Zillow will make its public debut on the Nasdaq on Wednesday under the ticker "Z."

Economy: The National Association of Realtors will release its report on existing home sales for June.

While there is a lack of major market-moving news on tap, Brown said there are still fundamental issues for investors to consider.

"There is still a high level of uncertainty, and you have a number of drags on the economic recovery at the moment," Brown said, citing elevated gas prices, contractionary policies at state and local levels and continued weakness in the housing sector.

World markets: European stocks were higher in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.1% and France's CAC 40 advanced 1.1%, while Germany's DAX gained 0.5%.

Asian markets ended the session mixed. The Shanghai Composite declined 0.1%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong ticked up 0.5% and Japan's Nikkei rose 1.2%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar weakened against the euro, the Japanese yen and the British pound.

Oil for August delivery increased $1.25 to $98.75 a barrel.

Gold futures for August delivery dropped $13.30 to $1,587.80 an ounce. Gold prices settled at a record high of $1,603.50 an ounce on Tuesday.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury dropped, pushing the yield up to 2.93% from 2.89% late Tuesday.