Boeing, Caterpillar, 3M stocks help power Dow industrials to 150-point rally

The Dow industrials were headed for a fresh record close on Wednesday, powered in part by a trio of industrial stocks. Leading the charge were shares of Boeing Co., up 1.6%, or $4.60, contributing about 30 points to the Dow Jones Industrial Average's late-morning advance. A $1 move in any one of the 30 Dow components equates to a 6.83-point swing in the price-weighted benchmark Caterpillar Inc. , up 3.1%, or $4.48, and 3M Co. [sL MMM] combined to add another 50 points to the blue-chip gauge. The Dow most recently up 156 points, or 0.6%, at 24,654. Talk of the House and Senate reaching a tentative deal on a tax package and discussions of a infrastructure plan to follow, helped to bolster gains on Wall Street. The S&P 500 index , meanwhile, was up 0.3% at 2,670. Both the Dow and S&P 500 were trading in record territory. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 0.4% at 6,889, not far from its own record.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.