U.S. stocks are ripping higher Wednesday after getting a shot of adrenaline from an encouraging update on U.S. inflation. Strong profit reports from Wells Fargo and other big U.S. banks are also helping to launch indexes toward their best day in two months.

Profits at some of the biggest U.S. lenders rose in the fourth quarter as dealmaking picked up and trading was boosted by strong equity markets, sparking a rally in banking stocks on Wednesday.