Stocks turned higher in volatile afternoon trading on Wednesday, led by gains in technology shares.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was up 2.38 points, or 0.02 percent, at 11,869.00. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was up 2.47 points, or 0.20 percent, at 1,256.52. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was up 16.71 points, or 0.63 percent, at 2,685.95.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Kenneth Barry)