U.S. stocks closed higher Wednesday. The dollar fell 0.2 percent against a basket of currencies. Light sweet crude oil for February delivery added $1.44 to $52.26 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while gold futures gained $6.10 to $1,191.60 per ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average increased 98.75, or 0.50 percent, to 19,954.28. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 6.42, or 0.28 percent, to 2,275.32. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 11.83, or 0.21 percent, to 5,563.65.