Wall Street set for a slightly upbeat open amid thin holiday trade

• This week, markets opened back up following the festive holiday break
• No earnings are expected to be published

U.S. stock index futures are pointing to a slightly higher open on Wednesday, as investors gear up for the latest in economic data as the year draws to a close.

This week, markets opened back up following the festive holiday break. U.S. stocks finished Tuesday lower, as shares of tech giant Apple tumbled.

Shares of the U.S. technology giant posted their worst day since August on Tuesday, following a report from Taiwan's Economic Daily newspaper, which cited unidentified sources, that Apple would be slashing its sales forecast for the iPhone X in the quarter to 30 million units. Consequently, investors will be paying close attention to the stock on Wednesday, as well as the moves in Apple suppliers.

Investors stateside will be turning their attention to the data space. At 7 a.m. ET, the routine mortgage applications are due out, followed by consumer confidence and pending home sales, both of which are set to be released at 10 a.m. ET.

Meantime at 10:30 a.m. ET, the Dallas Fed's Texas service sector outlook survey is expected to be released.

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In politics, investors are likely to still be mulling over the latest concerning tax reform, which has boosted market sentiment in recent weeks. On Friday, President Donald Trump signed a $1.5 trillion tax bill in law, capping off a yearlong effort, to cut tax rates for both individuals and companies.

Meantime, crude futures hit a more than two-year high on Tuesday, however in today's session, prices came under pressure.

No earnings are expected to be published.

—CNBC's Christina Wilkie contributed to this report