US stock edge higher in midday trading; eBay jumps on news that it will spin off PayPal

FILE - This July 15, 2013 file photo shows the New York Stock Exchange in New York. U.S. stocks are opening slightly higher Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2014, as investors set aside worries about the protests in Hong Kong. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) (The Associated Press)

U.S. stocks are edging higher as investors set aside worries about the protests in Hong Kong, the Asian financial hub.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 43 points, or 0.3 percent, to 17,114 as of noon Eastern time Tuesday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose three points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,980. The Nasdaq composite rose eight points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,514.

EBay rose 7 percent, the second-biggest gain in the S&P 500 index, after the company said it would spin off the mobile payment service PayPal.

The S&P 500 has slumped 1 percent in September, putting it on track for its third monthly loss this year.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.49 percent.