Stocks pulled back as traders retreated from a rally that brought indexes to their highest levels since the peak of the financial crisis in September 2008.
Gold crossed $1,400 an ounce to another record on Monday as traders looked for safe places to park money.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 37.24, or 0.3%, to close at 11,406.84. It surged 2.9% last week after the Federal Reserved announced a $600 billion stimulus package for the US economy.
The Standard and Poor’s 500 index fell 2.60, or 0.2%, to 1,223.25.
The Nasdaq composite index continued to outperform other market measures, as it has done all year, edging up 1.07, or 0.04%, to 2,580.05. The technology-focused index is up 13.7% for the year, compared to a 9.4% gain for the Dow and a 9.7 gain for the S&P 500.
Financial companies were down the most among the 10 industry groups that make up the S&P 500 index. Technology, energy and materials companies were the only groups in the index to show meagre gains.
Stocks have risen in recent weeks on better-than-expected corporate earnings reports and the introduction of a bond-buying program by the Federal Reserve that is intended to stimulate the economy by driving interest rates lower and encouraging spending.
