Small Company Stocks Lead Indexes Higher

Stocks closed higher on Wall Street, led by gains in smaller companies, technology giants, and banks, the AP reports. Facebook rose 2.1% Wednesday, while Bank of America added 2.4% and JPMorgan Chase rose 1.6%. Smaller companies trounced the rest of the market, and an index tracking those stocks closed at another record high. Banks were benefiting from higher bond yields and expectations that interest rates will continue to rise. That will help banks because they can charge higher interest rates on loans. High-dividend stocks like utilities and makers of consumer goods fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 10 points, or 0.4%, to 2,507. The Dow Jones industrial average increased 56 points, or 0.3%, to 22,340. The Nasdaq rose 73 points, or 1.1%, to 6,453. (More stock market stories.)