5 Things to Know

5 things to know before the stock market opens Wednesday

1. S&P 500 finishes about 5 points away from May record close

A trader at the New York Stock Exchange, June 4, 2021.
Source: NYSE

U.S. stock futures were flat Wednesday, one day after the S&P 500 inched closer to last month's record close, finishing just about 5 points shy. The Nasdaq, riding a three-session winning streak, was roughly 1.5% away from its record close in late April. The Dow on Tuesday dropped for the second straight day, though the 30-stock average remained 0.5% from its early May record close. The 10-year Treasury yield dipped Wednesday, trading just above 1.5%. Wall Street was looking ahead to the next read on inflation — the May consumer price index being released Thursday.

2. New meme stock Clover Health is set to soar again

Clover Health featured at the Nasdaq
Source: Nasdaq

Meme stock mania was set to continue Wednesday with day traders focusing once again on Clover Health. The stock was up 22% in premarket trading following a nearly 86% rally Tuesday for a 146% surge since Friday's close. Wendy's, another name popular among Reddit traders, gained almost 26% on Tuesday. It was higher again in premarket trading Wednesday. Last week's frenzy around AMC Entertainment died down a bit. Shares fell 5% in the premarket. After Wednesday's closing bell, the original meme stock GameStop is set to report quarterly results. Shares rose in the premarket after closing up 7%. Emerging as a meme stock, Clean Energy Fuel soared 27% in Wednesday's premarket.

3. Biden to depart on first overseas trip after infrastructure talks stall

U.S. President Joe Biden departs after speaking in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, June 2, 2021.
Samuel Corum | Bloomberg | Getty Images

President Joe Biden is set to leave Wednesday for the first overseas trip of his term. The first stop in his eight-day tour is in the United Kingdom. Biden's trip ends next week with a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Biden's departure comes one day after he ended infrastructure talks with a group of GOP senators. He started to reach out to senators from both parties in a new effort to forge a bipartisan compromise, setting a summer deadline for Congress to pass legislation. However, Democrats were also laying the groundwork to pass some or all of the infrastructure package on their own.

4. Senate passes $250 billion bipartisan tech and manufacturing bill

A worker at the photolithography section of a semiconductor plant of the Mikron Group in Zelenograd, Moscow.
Anton Novoderezhkin | TASS | Getty Images

In the coming weeks, the House is expected to take up a bipartisan $250 billion tech and manufacturing bill passed by the closely divided Senate on Tuesday. The measure includes $52 billion to fund semiconductor research, design and manufacturing initiatives. Biden applauded the bill's passage as the White House ramps up its own recommendations on how to secure American supply chains that run through China and how to counteract Beijing's geopolitical ambitions.

5. Bitcoin bounces after El Salvador adopts it as legal tender

A man works on a laptop at a Bitcoin training facility. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has announced that he will propose a law to the Congress, where his party controls a majority, for Bitcoin to become legal tender.
Camilo Freedman | LightRocket | Getty Images

One day after falling to a three-week low, bitcoin rose 5% to more than $35,400 on Wednesday. Adding support, El Salvador became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender. Prices in El Salvador can now be shown in bitcoin, tax contributions can be paid with the digital currency, and exchanges in bitcoin will not be subject to capital gains tax there. El Salvador's current official currency is the U.S. dollar. It's still unclear how El Salvador will ultimately roll out bitcoin as legal tender.

— The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report. Follow all the market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with CNBC's coronavirus coverage.