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Stocks climbed early on Wednesday, and then picked up a bit more speed in the afternoon following the release of the December Fed minutes.

All three major indices finished in the green.

First up, the scoreboard:

• Dow: 19,941.33, +59.57, (+0.30%)
• S&P 500: 2,270.57, +12.76, (+0.57%)
• Nasdaq: 5,477.81, +48.72, (+0.90%)
• US 10-year yield: 2.455%, +0.001
• WTI Crude oil: $56.34/bbl, +0.87, (+1.6%) 

1. The Fed has its eyes on Trump. The Federal Reserve is watching for the impact of fiscal policy on economic growth and on how quickly it raises interest rates, according to the minutes of the Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) meeting held in December. President-elect Donald Trump has proposed billions in infrastructure spending, and tax cuts for corporations and individuals.

2. The US auto industry is on the verge of a historic milestone. Throughout Wednesday, automakers are releasing their sales numbers for December. The final data could show that in 2016, US auto sales rose to a new record and for a seventh straight year. 

3. Trump's pick to head the SEC has a history of defending big banks. Transition sources say that Trump will nominate Jay Clayton, a Wall Street lawyer, to head up the Securities and Exchange Commission. He represented multiple banks during the financial crisis including Barclays, Bear Stearns, and Goldman Sachs.

4. Bitcoin went bananas. The cryptocurrency was 10.1% higher at $1,127.48 per coin just after noon in New York on Wednesday, bringing its 2017 gain to 17.8%. Bitcoin is up 95% since the beginning of September, and it gained 123% in 2016, making it the top performing currency for the second year in a row.

5. HSBC: The "euphoria" surrounding the dollar will end once reality sets in. "The USD rally will reverse as belief in Trump-flation turns to realization that the scale of policy overhaul is relatively modest ('Trump-lite'), and that the results are underwhelming as a consequence ('Trump-failure')," they wrote. "We expect a retracement from mid-year to the end of the year."

6. The Canadian dollar climbed higher. The currency was up by 0.8% at 1.3318 against the US dollar in the late afternoon. It was through its 20-day moving average for the first time since December 15, as Marc Chandler, global head of currency strategy, observed.

7. Weight watchers jumped by 20% after a tweet from Oprah and a new diet ranking. The company had the fourth-best diet in US News & World Report's new ranking of eating plans on Wednesday, and major investors and board member Oprah Winfrey tweeted a new advertisement supporting it. 

ADDITIONALLY:

The "frenzy" for Manhattan real estate is over.

Here are the fastest growing and shrinking states in the US.

The 10 biggest risks the world faces in 2017.

Trump delivered a warning via Twitter to Republicans on Obamacare repeal to keep the heat on the Democratic "clowns."

Sears' CEO just gave the company another $500 million lifeline.

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Welcome to Finance Insider, Business Insider's summary of the top stories of the past 24 hours.

President-elect Donald Trump will nominate Jay Clayton, a Wall Street lawyer, to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, according to transition sources. Clayton, a partner at Sullivan and Cromwell, has represented numerous Wall Street giants and has a history of defending financial institutions against regulators.

"We need to undo many regulations which have stifled investment in American businesses, and restore oversight of the financial industry in a way that does not harm American workers," Trump said in a statement from the transition.

Elsewhere in Wall Street news, we now know how the top banks stack up in dealmaking, and it isn't even close. A big deal in the options trading business just went down. And big banks are gearing up to fight the Volcker rule.

Forbes' latest 30 Under 30 finance list just dropped, and hedge fund guys dominated. Four young Goldman Sachs employees also made the cut.

Blackstone's Byron Wien unveiled his big surprises for 2017. And Eurasia Group set out the 10 biggest risks the world faces in 2017.

In markets news, the Canadian dollar is climbing, and the price of bitcoin is surging. 

In auto news, Ford's CEO explained the real reason the company is killing its plan to build a Mexico factory — and it’s not just because of Donald Trump. Tesla missed on deliveries for 2016.

And Faraday Future unveiled its first electric car for production — which the company says has a range of more than 300 miles per charge. Unfortunately, the car appeared to malfunction during its big debut.

Lastly, here are the 12 things every guy should keep in his gym bag.

Here are the top Wall Street headlines from the past week

JPMorgan Chase is about to slash the 100,000-point sign-up bonus for the most ballyhooed credit card of 2016 — Last summer, JPMorgan Chase revealed its newest rewards card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve, complete with a $450 annual fee and a bevy of benefits, including an unheard of 100,000-point sign-up bonus worth about $1,500 in travel credit.

Customers developed a new habit during the recession — it's killing Applebee's and Buffalo Wild Wings. Casual-dining chains like Buffalo Wild Wings, Applebee's, and Ruby Tuesday are expected to have a difficult 2017.

UBS: The Trump rally has its risks, but now is not the time to be a contrarian — What a ride it’s been for US stocks since the US presidential election.

Trump's secretary of state appointee agrees to cut all ties with Exxon Mobil — Exxon Mobil and Rex Tillerson agreed to sever all ties to comply with conflict-of-interest requirements as the company's former chairman and chief executive awaits confirmation as US secretary of state.

Amazon is launching its own athleisure brand — Amazon is jumping on the athleisure trend with its own in-house brand of athletic apparel. 

Here are the fastest growing and shrinking states in the US — Utah is growing quickly, while West Virginia is losing people.

Here's when the major central banks will deliver their monetary policy decisions in 2017 — While it may be the start of a new year, one constant theme for markets remains the same — the importance of central banks when it comes to movements in financial markets, particularly the US Federal Reserve.

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LONDON — The FTSE 100 closed at a record high for the fifth session in a row on Wednesday, closing marginally higher despite a dreadful day for the retail sector.

The FTSE 100 closed up 0.14%, or 10.21 points higher, at 7.188.10. It is the second record close this week and extends a winning run that began in the period between Christmas and New Year.

House builders were the strongest performers after better than expected construction PMI figures and an upbeat investment note from Deutsche Bank. Analysts from the investment bank said in a note to clients this morning: "After a tumultuous 2016, we see appealing value in the UK Housebuilder sector."

Fiona Cincotta, a market analyst at City Index, says in an emailed statement: "UK construction PMI followed in the footsteps of the manufacturing PMI from the previous session and surpassed expectations with a reading of 54.2, the strongest in 11 months. There was plenty to cheer such as stronger demand pattern, job creation and a broad-based upturn in business activity which pushed house building stocks higher.

"However, an increasing cost pressure cannot be ignored, as suppliers pass on higher imported raw material prices following the 15% decline in the value of the pound since the EU referendum."

Taylor Wimpey closed up 4.1%, Barratt Developments ended the day 3.9% higher, and Persimmon closed up 3.1%.

Meanwhile, retailers were crippled at the other end of the table. Next was the worst hit after a profit warning this morning. The clothing retailer ended the day 14.3% lower than where it started.

Next's gloomy outlook infected sentiment in the sector, with Marks & Spencer falling just over 6% and Primark owner Associated British Foods falling 3.6%. Dixons Carphone, a High Street retailer although not of clothing, fell 2.8%.

City Index's Cincotta says: "Retailers set off on the wrong foot following a bleak outlook from Next and disappointing sales for the festive period; the sector failed to turn around throughout the course of the day as fears that more of the same is set to follow as other retailers report throughout the week."

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Bitcoin is going bananas.

The cryptocurrecy trades higher by 6.9% at $1094.69 per coin on Wednesday, bringing its 2017 gain to 15%.

On its first trading day of the new year, bitcoin crossed above the $1,000 mark for the first time since 2013.

While strength over the past few months has been particularly impressive, up 90% since the beginning of September, bitcoin enjoyed a blistering 2016 as it gained 123%, making it the top performing currency for the second year in a row. 

Bitcoin's gains have been buoyed by renewed interest from China, where money is rushing out of the country as its currency, the yuan, continues to weaken. China's foreign-exchange reserves shrunk by about 8% in 2016 to $3.05 trillion as of November. The outflows have pushed the yuan to its weakest levels against the dollar since 2008.

According to a recent Business Insider Intelligence briefing, citing data from Cryptocompare, "In the first 24 hours of the new year, over 5 million bitcoins were bought in Chinese yuan, equating to $3.8 billion. In contrast, just 53,000 bitcoins were bought in US dollars."

And things aren't likely to get better any time soon unless China to takes action to stop the bleeding as the Fed ratcheted up its 2017 rate hike expectations to three from two. If those rate hikes were to happen, an even weaker yuan is likely in the cards, creating an even more beneficial scenario for bitcoin. 

SEE ALSO: China is behind the latest bitcoin craze

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