US stocks were higher on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve signalled that it was in no rush to scale back its extensive support for the US economy. Volume was lighter than average for early afternoon in the session. General Electric led the Dow higher, rising 3.2 percent to $20.75 after the company's finance chief said the company's profit growth over the next few years will be the fastest it had seen in a decade.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 45.18 points, or 0.36 percent, at 12,640.55. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 2.23 points, or 0.17 percent, at 1,349.47. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 7.20 points, or 0.25 percent, at 2,854.74. The S&P 500 is up 7 percent so far in 2011 and hit a three-year high in the prior session. Recent gains have come on strong corporate results, with about 75 percent of reported S&P companies beating forecasts.