NEW YORK, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded higher in the morning session Monday as Wall Street looked into the country's tax reform progress.
Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 92.65 points, or 0.40 percent, to 23,450.89. The S&P 500 was up 4.01 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,582.86. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 7.39 points, or 0.11 percent, to 6,790.18.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Friday that he expected a Republican tax reform bill to be sent to U.S. President Donald Trump by Christmas this year. Some analysts, however, doubted that the reform may not be achieved by year-end.
Market expectations of tax reform have been a positive for stocks this year, as a tax-code overhaul would potentially lower corporate taxes.
Overseas, the three-party exploratory talks for the formation of Germany's new government failed late Sunday night after the Free Democratic Party (FDP) pulled out due to unbridgeable differences in immigration and energy.
FDP leader Christian Lindner said after the decision that there was no "basis of trust" with German Chancellor Angela Merkel's bloc of Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) and the Green Party.
Merkel is now facing the biggest political crisis since she took office 12 years ago. If the FDP refuses to rejoin the talks, Merkel may have to form a minority coalition or hold a new election.
There is no major economic data due Monday. Enditem
