The Week Ahead, July 28-Aug. 1

KEY EVENT: Wake-up call? A sleepy midsummer week for Main Street could end in a rude awakening for Wall Street depending on the results from a busy schedule of employment, housing and corporate earnings reports and a much-anticipated Fed meeting.

MONDAY: The National Association of Realtors posts pending home sales for June.

TUESDAY: Case-Shiller home prices for May and consumer confidence in July from The Conference Board. Earnings: New Hyde Park shopping centers owner Kimco Realty, American Express, Arrow Electronics, Merck, Pfizer, UPS.

WEDNESDAY: The Federal Reserve issues an update on monetary policy and interest rates. Also, the Commerce Department releases the first look at second-quarter GDP. And payroll processor ADP posts its estimates of private-sector jobs created in July. Earnings: Plainview LED tool supplier Veeco Instruments, Kraft Foods, Whole Foods Market.

THURSDAY: Jobless benefits claims for the week ended July 26 from the Labor Department. Earnings: Colgate-Palmolive, Exxon Mobil, MasterCard, Time Warner Cable.

FRIDAY: Unemployment and jobs created in July from the Labor Department. Also, motor vehicle sales from automakers and consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan. Earnings: Uniondale real estate investor Arbor Realty Trust, Chevron, Procter & Gamble.