Investing.com – Wall Street rallied on Monday, as a surge in telecoms and financials offset a slump in health care while uncertainty concerning the progress of U.S. tax reform limited gains.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher at 23,430.33. The S&P 500 closed 0.13% higher while the Nasdaq Composite closed at 6790.71, up 0.12%.
In what was a quiet day on the calendar for top-tier economic data, investor focus remained on the progress of tax reform amid growing uncertainty whether the government can push through tax-reform before the end of the year.
The Sentate is not expected to vote on their version of bill – which significantly differs from the Republican’s version – until after Thanksgiving, dampening prospect of tax-reform being passed before the year end as there is limited time left on the legislative calendar for this year.
Investor expectations of tax-reform has been one of major catalysts in the recent rally as it widely viewed as inflationary and is expected to boost economic growth.
The returned of risk-on sentiment comes against renewed geopolitical uncertainty in the Eurozone as German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Monday, she would prefer new elections rather than lead a minority government after talks to form the country's next government collapsed overnight.
Energy, meanwhile, continued to weigh on the broader market amid pressure from falling oil prices as investors opted for caution ahead of the OPEC meeting on Nov. 30.
'Bulls and Bears' on Wall Street
The top Dow gainers for the session: Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) up 1.7%, Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) up 1.7% and Home Depot (NYSE:HD) up 1.6%
Merck (NYSE:MRK) down 2%, General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) down 1.3% and Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) down 0.7%, were among the worst Dow performers of the session.