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An early gain for stocks, driven by strong company earnings

Alex Veiga Associated Press

U.S. stocks moved higher in early trading Thursday as investors welcomed encouraging earnings from McDonald’s, eBay and other companies. The market also got a lift from a rally in European stocks after the head of the European Central Bank said the bank will consider expanding its stimulus program in December.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 166 points, or 1 percent, to 17,335 as of 10:02 a.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 20 points, or 1 percent, to 2,039. The Nasdaq gained 55 points, or 1.2 percent, to 4,896.

E-GAINER: EBay jumped 12.9 percent a day after the e-commerce company reported results that came in well ahead of what analysts were expecting. The stock rose $3.12 to $27.33.

HAPPY MEAL: McDonald’s climbed 6 percent after the world’s largest burger chain said its sales increased in the third quarter. McDonald’s shares added $6.97 to $109.51.

CREDIT CRIMPED: Shares in American Express tumbled 6.3 percent a day after the credit card issuer reported a 16 percent drop in profits, missing analysts’ estimates. American Express said it was hurt by higher expenses and the strong U.S. dollar. It also cut its full-year forecast. The stock slid $4.82 to $71.69.

EUROPEAN MARKETS: Germany’s DAX rose 2.3 percent, while the CAC-40 in France rose 2.4 percent. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares gained 0.4 percent.

ASIA’S DAY: The Shanghai Composite Index finished up 1.4 percent following a 3 percent slide Wednesday. Elsewhere in Asia stock markets closed mostly lower. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.6 percent and South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.6 percent.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude added 71 cents to $45.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained 62 cents to $48.47 a barrel in London.

BONDS AND CURRENCIES: U.S. government bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.04 percent from 2.03 percent the day before. The euro fell to $1.1161 while the dollar rose to 120.42 yen.