Wall Street powers through the first half of 2021 with U.S. stocks at record highs

The Dow Jones industrial average advanced more than 210.22 points, or 0.6 percent, to close at 34,502.51 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 edged up 5.70 points, or 0.1 percent, to settle at 4,297.50 and chalked up its 34th record finish of the year. The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 24.38 points, or nearly 0.2 percent, to end the session at 14,503.95.