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New York - The Dow finished at its seventh straight record on Wednesday with banking shares rallying after the Federal Reserve kept alive the chance of a December interest rate increase.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.2% to 22 412.59.
The broad-based S&P 500 also finished at a record, rising 0.1% to 2 508.24, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index shed 0.1% to 6 456.04.
The Fed concluded a two-day meeting by announcing that it would keep interest rates unchanged and move ahead with a plan to unwind a crisis-era stimulus program. Both of those moves had been expected.
But news that the Fed still planned a third interest rate hike in December boosted treasury bond yields, lifting shares of JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and other banks.
The Fed statement noted that the devastation caused by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria are "inflicting severe hardship" on communities.
However, the US central bank said the economic impact of the storm is likely to be felt only in the near term.
"The overall impression is modestly more hawkish," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities. "If you continue to see (bond) yields go up, you'll probably see more of a rotation" into financial stocks.
Apple fell 1.7% on news that its latest Apple Watch was encountering cellular connectivity problems.
Energy shares gained after US oil prices finished above $50 a barrel for the first time since late July. ConocoPhillips and Halliburton both rose more than 1%.
Food companies came under pressure after General Mills reported earnings that missed analyst expectations. It tumbled 5.9% and Kellogg and Kraft Heinz both lost more than 1%.
Retailer Bed Bath & Beyond plummeted 15.9% after reporting that second-quarter earnings tumbled 43.7% from the year-ago period to $94.2m. Comparable store sales fell 2.6%.
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