Stocks are likely to rise Wednesday, boosted by upbeat earnings results from Hewlett-Packard.

After markets closed Thursday, Hewlett-Packard posted a 34% increase in fiscal second-quarter profit on a 12% jump in revenue. Sales of printers, PCs, computer servers and technology services all increased by more than 10%.

In this morning’s economic news, Statistics Canada reported that the leading index rose 0.6% in April, returning to the rate of increase seen in January and February after a 0.7% advance in March.

In a separate release, StatsCan foreign investors increased their holdings of Canadian securities by $6.2 billion in March, reversing most of their divestment in February.

Meanwhile, Canadian investors continued to add to their holdings of foreign securities, primarily in foreign bonds.

Most European markets are higher at midday, in part due to a fivefold surge in profit at Zurich Financial in the first quarter.

In Paris, the CAC 40 is 1.5% higher at 3,622 points. In Frankfurt, the Dax is up 1.4% to 3,843.20 points.

London’s FTSE 100 is ahead 0.7% at 4,444.10 points.

Asian stock markets closed higher overnight.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei registered its largest gain this year, jumping 256.65 points, or 2.4%, to close at 10,967.74 points.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index rallied 397.02 points, or 3.59%, to 11,469.41.

On Tuesday, the S&P/TSX composite index finished down 0.96 of a point at 8,122.54.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index slid 13.43 points to 1,535.95.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 61.60 points, or 0.62%, to 9,968.51.

The S&P 500 added 7.45 points, or 0.69%, to 1,091.55. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index gained 21.18 points, or 1.13%, to 1,897.82.

After markets closed, the Ontario Securities Commission said it is restricting the trading rights of Conrad Black and other executives, officers and directors of the Hollinger newspaper companies that have failed to file 2003 financial reports on time.