U.S. stocks mostly opened higher on Tuesday, as optimism continued to grow that a tax bill in Washington would be passed this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 54 points, or 0.2%, to 24,842. The blue-chip average ended at a record on Monday – its 70th of the year – and continues to trade near its intraday peak. The S&P 500 rose 3 points to 2,693, a gain of 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 4 points to 6,991, a decline of less than 0.1%. Investors continued to watch the latest policy updates out of Washington. The House of Representatives is expected to vote on the final version on Tuesday, while the Senate vote is expected to follow either on Tuesday or Wednesday. That should be enough time for the bill to land on President Donald Trump’s desk for the final signature before Christmas, which is the Republicans’ self-imposed deadline. In company news, Darden Restaurants Inc. rose 3.6% after it reported results that topped expectations.
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