Earnings reports push stocks higher

Better than expected earnings reports from three corporate bellwethers helped push stocks to their fourth day of gains on Wednesday, even though the companies themselves didn't get to enjoy the rally.

Intel Corp. and JP Morgan Chase & Co. both fell by more than a percent despite announcing double-digit gains in profits. Their earnings reports, however, contained nuggets of hopeful news on the direction of the broader economy.

JPMorgan's chief executive Jamie Dimon predicted credit card defaults are likely to fall next quarter, which helped push shares of American Express up 1.9 percent and MasterCard up 3.9 percent. Intel predicted sales should remain consistent through the end of the year as customers switch from back-to-school shopping to the holiday season. That contributed to gains in Dell, which was up 1.5 percent for the day, and Microsoft, which was up 2 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 75.68 points, or 0.7 percent, to 11,096.08. The broad Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 8.33, also 0.7 percent, to 1,178.10, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 23.31, or 1 percent, to 2,441.23. Gold settled up $23.80 at $1,369.50 an ounce, the latest in a recent series of record highs. - AP