Nasdaq Closes At Fifth Straight Record As Stocks Finish Higher

U.S. stocks rebounded to close higher Wednesday following President-elect Donald Trump's press conference, with the Nasdaq notching its fifth straight record close in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 98.75 points, or 0.5%, to finish at 19,954.28, after coming within 27 points of the 20,000 mark, led by gains in Merck & Co. and International Business Machines Corp. . The S&P 500 index closed up 6.42 points, or 0.3%, at 2,275.32, a few points short of a new record with the energy and utilities sectors the strongest performers. The Nasdaq Composite index finished up 11.83 points, or 0.2%, at 5,563.65, its fifth record close in as many sessions, and the seventh straight day of gains for the tech-heavy index.