The New York stock exchanges closed with gains on Wednesday, building on the gains from the previous day. The broad S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average reached new record highs.
Trading on Wall Street was closed for half a day leading up to Christmas Eve. US stock markets will remain closed on Christmas Day, but trading will continue on Boxing Day. Volumes will likely be much lower than usual then, as many traders have the day off.
The S&P 500, the benchmark for the 500 largest publicly traded companies in the United States, rose 0.3 percent to 6932.05 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.6 percent higher at 48,731.16, and the Nasdaq climbed 0.2 percent to 23,613.30.
Wall Street also saw gains on Tuesday after positive figures on US economic growth. The world’s largest economy grew at its strongest pace in two years in the third quarter, thanks primarily to robust consumer spending. Consumer spending is the engine of the US economy.
