US stocks tick up as Fed official suggests slight taper

NEW YORK: US stocks edged higher Monday as a Federal Reserve official suggested that the central bank could take a small step next week to reel in its stimulus program.

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 5.52 points (0.03 percent) at 16,025.72.

The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 3.29 (0.18 percent) to 1,808.38, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite added 6.23 (0.15 percent) at 4,068.75.

James Bullard, the president of the Fed's St. Louis branch, said in a speech that "a small taper" of the $85 billion a month asset-purchase program might be a possibility as Fed policy makers wrestle with how to respond to signs of improvement in the economy and jobs market.