Dow Closes Early, and at a Record High

Major US indexes closed at record highs on a holiday-shortened trading day: The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday easily beat the record it marked in October, rising 179 points, or 0.7%, to 26,966. The S&P 500 closed at its third straight record high, up 22 points to 2,995. The Nasdaq also closed at a record, finishing at 8,170, a gain of 0.8%.

Health care and technology stocks led the gains, reports the AP. Merck rose 1.6% and Symantec soared 13.6% following a report that Broadcom was interested in buying it. But CNBC sees something else afoot, citing newly released private payroll data that didn't meet expectations, which has more people predicting the Fed could lower rates later this month. One quote it got along those lines: "There’s virtually 100% chance that the Fed will lower rates at the July meeting. I think the Fed will see the economic indicators in the United States are beginning to slow." Markets will be closed Thursday for the Independence Day holiday.

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