US stocks end mixed

Associated Press

NEW YORK

U.S. stocks bounced around Wednesday and finished little changed after Congress passed the Republican-sponsored tax bill. Smaller companies fared the best.

The Senate narrowly passed the tax bill after midnight and the House, which passed a similar bill Tuesday but had to go back and make changes, followed suit in the afternoon. President Donald Trump is expected to sign the bill soon.

Smaller companies climbed, as they might benefit the most from the corporate tax cut. Bond yields rose, which hurt companies that pay big dividends, including utilities and household goods makers.

Stocks have jumped over the past four weeks as the tax legislation moved closer to passing, but they haven’t done much over the past two days as Congress voted on the bill. Stocks set all-time highs Monday and slipped Tuesday.

It’s been a very strong year for the market, and ordinarily investors might sell some of their holdings in late December and take some profits before they make new investments in January.