U.S. stocks rally amid strong corporate earnings

U.S. stocks traded higher on Wednesday, as Wall Street cheered better-than-expected quarterly earnings from Morgan Stanley and Microsoft.

At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 58.48 points, or 0.32 percent, to 18,617.49. The S&P 500 was up 10.57 points, or 0.49 percent, to 2,174.35. The Nasdaq Composite Index soared 52.53 points, or 1.04 percent, to 5,088.90.

Morgan Stanley reported Wednesday net revenues of 8.9 billion U.S. dollars for the second quarter of 2016, topping analysts' estimates. Its quarterly net income was 1.6 billion dollars, or 75 cents per diluted share. Shares of the giant bank rose 2.84 percent in the early trading.

Microsoft announced Tuesday after the closing bell that its quarterly revenue was 20.6 billion dollars and its net income was 3.1 billion dollars, or 39 cents per diluted share, beating market expectations. Its share was up over six percent around midday Wednesday.

The latest data from Thomson Reuters showed that the S&P 500 companies' blended earnings in the second quarter of 2016 are expected to decrease 4.3 percent year on year, while the revenues are forecast to decline 0.7 percent.

There is no major economic data due out Wednesday.

U.S. stocks closed mixed Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average extending its record run to a six straight day, as investors digested quarterly earnings reports from notable companies. Enditem