New York -- U.S. markets edged higher Wednesday on quick gains by Alcoa and Caterpillar Inc., each of which rose more than 2 percent.
The Shanghai composite index rose 2.78 percent, giving corporations with strong positions in China a boost. Financial firms looked weak, however, with shares of JPMorgan & Chase off 0.34 percent and Bank of America shares down 0.23 percent.
In early afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average added 75.58 points or 0.76 percent to 10,015.56. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 8.41 or 0.79 percent to 1,070.41. The Nasdaq composite index gained 24.33 or 1.12 percent to 2,194.90.
The benchmark 10-year treasury note lost 5/32 to yield 3.208 percent.
The euro rose to $1.2012 from Tuesday's $1.1947. Against the yen, the dollar was unchanged from Tuesday at 91.39 yen.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index lost 1.04 percent, 98.81, to 9,439.13.
In Britain, the FTSE 100 index rose 1.15 percent, 57.71, to 5,085.86.
