U.S. stocks edged higher in afternoon trading Wednesday ahead of a highly anticipated earnings update from computer chip giant Nvidia that may provide insights into the current state and future of artificial intelligence.

The S&P 500 was up 0.2%. The benchmark index is on pace to top its record high set earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 127 points, or 0.3%, as of 1:20 p.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite inched up 0.1%.

Gains in technology and financial companies helped outweigh declines in communication services, health care and other sectors. Investors see Nvidia’s quarterly report, coming after the bell, as a barometer for the strength of the boom in artificial intelligence because the company makes most of the chips that power the technology. Its heavy weig

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