NEW YORK, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded higher on Wednesday following the release of stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings reports.
At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 167.05 points, or 0.65 percent, to 25,959.91. The S&P 500 increased 13.96 points, or 0.50 percent, to 2,790.38. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 32.27 points, or 0.45 percent, to 7,255.96.
Bank of America Wednesday reported adjusted earnings per share of 0.47 U.S. dollar for the fourth quarter this year, higher than market expectations of 0.44 dollar.
Citigroup on Tuesday reported adjusted earnings per share of 1.28 dollars for the fourth quarter of 2017, beating market expectations 1.19 dollars.
Earnings season is off to a strong start thus far. According to financial research company FactSet, of the S&P 500 companies that had reported as of Friday, 69 percent have surpassed earnings-per-share estimates while 85 percent have beaten expectations on the top line.
