NEW YORK, July 1 -- U.S. stocks climbed higher midday Tuesday, pushing the S&P 500 further into uncharted territory, as investors cheered upbeat manufacturing data from the United States and China.

Major stock indices opened higher to begin the first trading day of the second half of 2014 on a positive note, with the S&P 500 hitting a new record intraday high about half an hour after the opening bell following the release of U.S. manufacturing data.

The broader S&P 500 kept refreshing its record highs during the morning trading session and is on pace for a record close. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is edging up closer to the psychologically important level of 17,000 points.

The Institute for Supply Management said Tuesday that economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector expanded in June for the 13th consecutive month due to gain in new orders.

Financial data firm Markit said the U.S. manufacturing sector expanded in June, with its final U.S. manufacturing PMI rising to 57.3, the highest since May 2010.

Upbeat Chinese manufacturing data overnight also gave Wall Street a boost. China's official data released Tuesday showed growth in the country's manufacturing sector accelerated to a six- month high in June, with the PMI rising to 51 last month, registering a strong end to the second quarter and an encouraging sign that the world's second largest economy is further stabilizing.

In corporate news, General Motors said that its total auto sales in the United States were up 1 percent in June from a year ago, beating market expectations of a sharp drop on concerns of a string of safety recalls due to its ignition switch defect. General Motors shares added 2.70 percent to trade at 37.28 U.S. dollars apiece in early trading.

The major focus of the week will be the U.S. nonfarm payroll report for June scheduled for release on Thursday by the Labor Department, as well as a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen at a conference of the International Monetary Fund on Wednesday.

U.S. financial markets will be closed on Friday for the Independence Day holiday.

U.S. stocks wrapped up the first half of this year higher, with the Dow up 1.5 percent, the S&P 500 up 6.1 percent and the Nasdaq up 5.5 percent.

Around midday, the blue-chip Dow surged 136.12 points, or 0.81 percent, to 16,962.72. The S&P 500 gained 13.46 points, or 0.69 percent, to 1,973.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 50.79 points, or 1.15 percent, to 4,458.97.