Dow, S&P 500 close at record highs as GOP takes Senate

Stocks jumped back into record territory Wednesday after the Republican party secured control of the U.S. Senate for the first time in eight years Tuesday.

Investors are hoping for a more business-friendly approach from Washington in terms of taxes and regulations.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 100.69 points, or 0.6%, to a record closing high of 17,484.53 and set a new intraday high of 17,486.59.

The Standard & Poor's jumped 11.47, or 0.6%, to an all-time closing high of 2023.57.

Bucking the positive trend, the Nasdaq composite index dipped 2.91 points, or 0.1%, to 4620.72.

Historically, Wall Street thrives with a Republican-controlled Congress and a Democratic president, according to Sam Stovall, U.S. equity strategist at S&P Capital IQ.

"Investors may have forgotten that the combination of a Democratic president and a unified Republican Congress has been accompanied by the best average performance for the S&P 500 since 1945," Stovall told clients in a report early Monday.

The Republican landslide, which gave it full control of both chambers of Congress, does matter to markets. But, "we wouldn't say this election is a game changer," says Bob Doll, chief equity strategist at Nuveen Asset Management. He dubs the change in the U.S. political landscape a "modest shift."

Oil prices halted their recent slide and rose for the first time in five days, climbing $1.50 to $78.74 a barrel. Oil prices have been in a slump since the summer and fell further at the start of the week after Saudi Arabia decided to sell its oil at bargain prices to the U.S. in a bid to maintain its market share amid a boom in U.S. production.

In economic news:

• Payroll processor ADP said Wednesday that businesses added 230,000 jobs in October, possibly foreshadowing another strong month of employment gains in the government's closely watched report due Friday.

• Services firms expanded more slowly in October, but the pace of growth was still healthy. Hiring also rose to the fastest pace in more than nine years.

Chrysler Group gained after it said it had third-quarter net income of $611 million, up 32% from a year ago. Revenue was $20.7 billion, up 18%. The automaker (FCAU) said it sold 711,000 vehicles worldwide in the quarter, up 18%.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.4%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 0.6% and the Shanghai composite fell 0.5%.

European benchmarks posted strong gains, with Britain's FTSE 100 up 1.3%, Germany's DAX 1.6% higher and France's CAC 40 leaping 1.9%.

Contributing: James R. Healey, William Cummings, The Associated Press.