NEW YORK, May 8 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded slightly higher on Wednesday, as investors kept a close eye on the latest updates regarding global trade.

Around midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 34.23 points, or 0.13 percent, to 25,999.32. The S&P 500 rose 2.58 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,886.63. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 6.14 points, or 0.08 percent, to 7,969.90.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors traded higher, with the real estate sector up nearly 0.5 percent, leading the winners.

Shares of McKesson rose over 4.3 percent, as the U.S. pharmaceutical distributor's first-quarter earnings beat market estimates, thanks to its stronger surgical distribution business.

Shares of TripAdvisor tumbled over 12.4 percent, after the travel review platform reported first-quarter revenue that missed market expectations.

The company also forecast a weakening growth in its non-hotel revenue.

U.S. stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday, as the panic among investors mounted over intensifying global trade frictions, with the Dow diving 473.39 points, or 1.79 percent to 25,965.09. Enditem