Wall St opens higher as tax bill nears passage

NEW YORK: Wall Street's main indexes opened higher on Wednesday after the US Senate approved a sweeping $1.5-trillion tax bill that is expected to boost corporate earnings and lead to higher dividends and stock buybacks for investors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 93.69 points, or 0.38 percent, to 24,848.44. The S&P 500 gained 9.13 points, or 0.340485 percent, to 2,690.6. The Nasdaq Composite added 26.97 points, or 0.39 percent, to 6,990.82.