Dow closes above 25,000 for first time since March

The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday closed 553.16 points higher, posting its second straight day of gains exceeding 500 points and closing above 25,000 points for the first time since March. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also posted gains Wednesday.

The upward momentum, which builds upon the Dow's more than 3-percent increase last week, comes as the nation's economy emerges from the coronavirus crisis and related lockdowns that inflicted signifiant damage and left millions unemployed.

But even as the Dow breaks through the 25,000 mark, the index is still down more than 10 percent in 2020, according to CNBC.

Stocks such as Amazon and Zoom Video that got a boost as people remained at home during the pandemic fell on Wednesday, but bank stocks like Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase posted gains.

Positive news about possible coronavirus vaccines may be helping markets. Last week, the pharmaceutical company Moderna announced positive news about a potential coronavirus vaccine, and on Monday Novavax said that it has begun the Phase 1 clinical trial of a possible vaccine.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, a member of the White House coronavirus task force team, said Wednesday that while a second wave of COVID-19 infections is possible it's "not inevitable."