Markets continued to rally this morning as companies announced better-than-expected quarterly results and the government announced some positive news, the Associated Press reported.

In the first hour of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 102.27 points to 11,341.55, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 9.03 points to 1,254.39 and the Nasdaq composite index rose 20.93 points to 2,305.78.

The rally continues from yesterday, when Wells Fargo & Co.’s earnings report helped ease investors’ worries about the banking sector’s health. Its stock rose 14.5 percent yesterday to close at $27.23.

Coca-Cola Co., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and United Technologies Corp.’s stronger-than-expected reports also helped boost confidence about the economy. Still, many companies have not yet reported their quarterly results, which could show trouble spots in the banking and housing sectors.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Commerce Department released a report stating that construction of homes and apartments rose by 9.1 percent in June, aided by a change in New York laws that has encouraged more apartment building. Construction of single-family homes fell by 5.3 percent, but applications for building permits, a sign of future activity, jumped 11.6 percent.

Oil prices also continued to fall, with light, sweet crude declining by $1.24 to $133.36 per barrel in premarket electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil dropped more than $4 per barrel yesterday and more than $6 on Tuesday.