U.S. stocks end mixed after Senate passing tax bill

NEW YORK, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks closed mixed on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average notching a record high, after Senate passed a major tax bill over the weekend.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 58.46 points, or 0.24 percent, to 24,290.05. The S&P 500 lost 3.18 points, or 0.12 percent, to 2,639.04. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 72.22 points, or 1.05 percent, to 6,775.37.

The U.S. Senate on Saturday narrowly passed the Republican bill to overhaul the tax code in decades, moving one step closer to the first major legislative victory of the Trump administration and congressional Republicans.

The House of Representatives passed its own version of tax reform legislation last month, which contained significant differences from the Senate version. Republicans plan to convene a conference in the next few weeks to reconcile the House and Senate versions.

Overhauling the tax code is a top priority of Republicans and they are hoping to send the final legislation to President Donald Trump before Christmas.

Analysts said market sentiment was overall boosted by the prospect of the tax bill and investors will look closely to see progress between the House's and Senate's joint bill later this week.

In corporate news, CVS Health Corporation and Aetna Inc. on Sunday announced the execution of a definitive merger agreement under which CVS Health will acquire all outstanding shares of Aetna for a 69-billion-U.S.-dollar combination of cash and stock. Enditem