Small caps stay positive

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) is trading in the red while the Dow is little changed.

At 11:33 a.m. ET, the small-cap index was up 2.76 points, or 0.40%, to 684.69. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) is up 24.50 points, or 0.20%, to 12,417.16.

Small-cap stocks opened with a rise following news that Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) saw a decline in fiscal first-quarter profit but still beat expectations. That’s good news for investors worried that the pain that from Bear Stearns (NYSE:BSC) could spread to other investment banks.

Also helping the bulls is Visa Inc. (NYSE:V). Shares of the world’s largest credit card company debuted today with a rise of over 30%.

In economic news, the Mortgage Bankers Association announced before the start of trading that its index of loan application volume fell 2.9% for the week ended March 14. Also, the index of refinancing applications tumbled 4.6%.

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