Click on chart to track markets
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Strong earnings from the technology sector have investors in high spirits Wednesday, with expectations of a strong start to the trading session.
Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were all roughly 1% higher ahead of the opening bell. Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.
Tech leaders Intel (INTC, Fortune 500), IBM (IBM, Fortune 500) and Yahoo (YHOO, Fortune 500) all beat Wall Street estimates when they reported their latest quarterly earnings after the close Tuesday.
In premarket trading, Yahoo shares surged 4%, Intel rose 6% and IBM slipped 1%.
"Clearly, tech is leading the market today," said Dick Del Bello, senior partner with Conifer Securities. "You have big names like Intel and IBM, which all did considerably better than expected in forecasts - and the tech sector has been leading the market for a while now."
Also bolstering the tech sector was software developer VMWare (VMW), which rose nearly 14% in premarket trading, a day after reporting strong earnings.
Stocks ended higher Tuesday, as investors focused on a pair of stronger-than-expected housing reports and the latest onslaught of corporate earnings.
Companies: Technology investors are eagerly awaiting results from Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500), which reports after Wednesday's closing bell.
Apple earnings are expected to jump to $5.35 a share, bolstered by sales of the Verizon iPhone and the iPad.
"Markets are looking at the earnings season in general, and even though the rate of growth isn't as great as last quarter, it's still trending the right way," said Frank Fantozii, president and chief executive of Planned Financial Services in Cleveland.
United Technologies (UTX, Fortune 500) reported quarterly earnings of $1.11 per share, up 19% from a year earlier. The aerospace and machinery maker's stock jumped nearly 3% in premarket trading.
Another Dow component, AT&T (T, Fortune 500), posted higher net income that was in line with expectations. The phone service provider edged higher in premarket trading.
Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500) reported quarterly net income of $3.8 billion, up 48% from a year earlier. The stock dipped 1.8% in premarket trading.
International power company AES (AES, Fortune 500) announced that will acquire DPL (DPL), the parent company of Dayton Power & Light Company, for $4.7 billion. Shares of AES rose 2%, while Dayton Power's stock jumped nearly 9% in premarket trade.
Wednesday marks the one-year anniversary of the BP oil spill in the Gulf Coast. BP (BP) shares rose more than 3% early in the day, but overall are down about 26% from a year ago.
Economy: The National Association of Realtors will report the latest existing home sales a half hour after the opening bell. Economists are looking for existing home sales to rise by 5 million annualized units, according to Briefing.com.
The Energy Information Administration will report its latest data on U.S. crude oil inventories at 10:30 a.m. ET.
World markets: European stocks rose in midday trading. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 2.2%, the DAX in Germany added 2.7% and France's CAC 40 advanced 2.1%.
Asian markets ended higher. The Shanghai Composite added 0.3%, the Hang Seng advanced 1.6%, and Japan's Nikkei rose 1.8%.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell against the euro and the British pound, but gained versus the Japanese yen.
Oil for June delivery rose $1.36 to $109.64 a barrel.
Gold futures for June delivery climbed $8.40 to $1,503.50 an ounce, after breaching a new intraday trading high of $1,506.20 earlier in the morning.
Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury fell, pushing the yield up to 3.40%. 
| Overnight Avg Rate | Latest | Change | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 yr fixed | 3.80% | 3.88% | |
| 15 yr fixed | 3.20% | 3.23% | |
| 5/1 ARM | 3.84% | 3.88% | |
| 30 yr refi | 3.82% | 3.93% | |
| 15 yr refi | 3.20% | 3.23% |
Today's featured rates:
| Index | Last | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 32,627.97 | -234.33 | -0.71% |
| Nasdaq | 13,215.24 | 99.07 | 0.76% |
| S&P 500 | 3,913.10 | -2.36 | -0.06% |
| Treasuries | 1.73 | 0.00 | 0.12% |
| Company | Price | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Motor Co | 8.29 | 0.05 | 0.61% |
| Advanced Micro Devic... | 54.59 | 0.70 | 1.30% |
| Cisco Systems Inc | 47.49 | -2.44 | -4.89% |
| General Electric Co | 13.00 | -0.16 | -1.22% |
| Kraft Heinz Co | 27.84 | -2.20 | -7.32% |
|
Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More |
Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More |
Honda and General Motors are creating a new generation of fully autonomous vehicles. More |
In 1998, Ntsiki Biyela won a scholarship to study wine making. Now she's about to launch her own brand. More |
Whether you hedge inflation or look for a return that outpaces inflation, here's how to prepare. More |
