US stocks open with slight gains, focus remain on US tax legislation

   •  Investors shrug-off German political jitters.
   •  Progress over the US tax bill holds the key. 

Major US equity indices opened with slight gains on the first trading day of a holiday-shortened week. 

Investors appeared to have shrugged off today's big headlines from Germany, where talks to form a coalition government have failed, with the focus firmly on the progress over a key US tax legislation. 

The House of Representatives passed their own version of a tax bill last week. But the likelihood that no action will be taken until after Thanksgiving Day, and with earnings season now out of the way, traders are likely to refrain from placing aggressive bets. 

Moreover, in the run-up to a holiday on Thursday, volumes are likely to remain thin, with the markets unlikely to witness any sharp sell-off or sharp gains.

During the opening hour of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added over 40-points to 23,400, while the broader S&P 500 Index treaded water near 2,580. Meanwhile, tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index climbed around 7-points to 6,790.