US stocks gained on Wednesday as results from banks, including Morgan Stanley, topped expectations, and on increased optimism about the technology sector's profit outlook. The energy sector also supported the market as the price of oil rose above $80 a barrel after data showed a smaller-than-expected rise in US crude stockpiles. Chevron gained 1.1 percent to $77.89.

Among tech shares, SanDisk Corp surged 9.9 percent to $23.60 as it said it was seeing strong demand in the mobile phone market, while Yahoo Inc climbed 3.7 percent to $17.83, noting advertising showed signs of life last quarter. Morgan Stanley jumped 6 percent to $34.46 after it posted a profit after three quarters of losses on strong fixed-income sales and trading revenues.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 24.79 points, or 0.25 percent, to 10,066.27. The Standard & Poor's 500 Indexrose 3.68 points, or 0.34 percent, to 1,094.74. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 8.29 points, or 0.38 percent, at 2,171.76.

Copyright Reuters, 2009