Stocks rise on strong results from Ford, 3M

NEW YORK (AP) — Stronger earnings reports are lifting stocks in midday trading.

Ford Motor Co. rose 2 percent today, after the carmaker reported its best first quarter earnings since 1998. Ford beat Wall Street’s earnings estimates with stronger sales of new vehicles.

3M Co. also rose 2 percent. The maker of Post-Its and Scotch Tape said quarterly profit jumped 16 percent from a year ago, beating analysts’ estimates.

Delta Air Lines Inc. said rising fuel prices played a large role in pushing its quarterly loss to 38 cents a share. Analysts expected worse. Delta jumped 6 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 101 points, or 0.8 percent, to 12,581. The S&P 500 index rose 12 points, or 0.9 percent, to 1,347. The Nasdaq composite rose 25 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,850.