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New York - US stocks finished little changed on Monday following mixed economic data as markets paused after last week's records.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 24.28 points (0.14%) to 17 366.24.
The broad-based S&P 500 dipped 0.24 (0.01%) to 2 017.81, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 8.17 (0.18%) to 4 638.91.
The Institute for Supply Management's purchasing managers' index for October manufacturing rose to 59.0, with companies saying activity is picking up more than expected going into the year-end holiday shopping season.
But the Commerce Department reported Monday that US construction spending fell a second straight month in September, for a 0.4% annual decline, surprising analysts who expected a pickup.
"It's not surprising (investors) are digesting a little bit after the highs" last week, said Mace Blicksilver, director of Marblehead Asset Management.
Chinese online vending giant Alibaba, surged 3.25% to a new high, one day ahead of its first earnings after IPO.
Social messaging service Twitter meanwhile sank 3.0%, and Facebook lost 1.5%.
Petroleum industry stocks suffered as US oil prices fell to their lowest level since June 2012.
Dow members ExxonMobil and Chevron lost 1.5% and 2.6%, respectively, while oil services companies Diamond Offshore and Baker Hughes fell 5.7% and 2.0%.
Covance shot up 25.9% on news that it will be acquired by Laboratory Corp of America for $5.6bn to create a giant in healthcare diagnostics. LabCorp fell 7.4%.
Sapient soared 42.0% on news it will be acquired by French public relations giant Publicis for $3.7bn.
Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury rose to 2.35% from 2.34% on Friday, while the 30-year rose to 3.07% from 3.06% on Friday.
