US stocks end lower amid discussions on sweeping tax bill

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - US stocks ended lower Tuesday while an upward trend in bond yields continued amid ongoing congressional debate over President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax bill.

Bond yields, which began to rise after international credit rating agency Moody's downgraded the US credit rating last week, maintained their upward trend due to an increase in public debt and associated interest payments.

The rise was also influenced by the discussions on the tax bill, which Trump described as “the biggest tax cut in US history.”

Trump met with Republicans in Congress on Tuesday to urge them to pass the comprehensive bill.

There are concerns that the tax cuts in the bill could lead to an increase in the country's debt and worsen the financial outlook.

With these developments, the US 10-year bond yield rose to 4.48%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.27%, or 114.83 points, to close at 42,677.24.

The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.38%, or 72.75 points, to 19,142.72 and the S&P 500 decreased 0.39%, or 23.14 points, to 5,940.46.

The VIX Index, also known as the “fear index," fell 0.28% to 18.09.