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Indexes down: Dow 0.38%, S&P 500 0.35%, Nasdaq 0.55%

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DigitalBridge ( DBRG/PJ ) rises on SoftBank's $4 bln acquisition deal

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Gold, silver miners fall as precious metal rally stalls

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Three main U.S. stock indexes set for double-digit yearly

gains

(Updates with late afternoon market data)

By Purvi Agarwal, Shashwat Chauhan and Saeed Azhar

Dec 29 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes kicked off

the final week of the year on a softer note on Monday, as

heavyweight technology stocks retreated from last week's gains

that had pushed ‌the S&P 500 to record highs.

The information technology sector weighed on the

S&P 500, as most tech and AI-linked stocks declined, with Nvidia ( NVDA )

down 1.5% and Palantir Technologies ( PLTR ) shedding

1.6%.

"This is (not) ​the beginning of the end of the tech

dominance, it'll turn out to be a buying opportunity," said Hank

Smith, director and ‍head of investment strategy at Haverford

Trust.

"A big reason for that is the top tech names, excluding

Tesla, ⁠do not have challenging valuations ⁠given their growth

rate, the moat around their business

At 1:38 p.m. the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell

187.31 points, or 0.38%, to 48,523.66, the S&P 500 lost

24.32 points, or ‌0.35%, to 6,905.68 and the Nasdaq Composite

lost 130.47 points, or 0.55%, ​to 23,462.63.

Tesla also fell almost 2.4% after hitting a record

high last week and weighed on the consumer discretionary sector

.

Materials slipped 1%, with precious metal miners

sliding as silver dropped sharply after topping $80 per

ounce for the first ⁠time, while gold also fell after

back-to-back record highs last week.

Conversely, ‍energy stocks gained ​the most, up 0.9%,

tracking a 2% rise in oil prices.

Stocks pulled back after the S&P 500 was in the 1% range of

the 7,000-point mark, and the blue-chip Dow hit a record closing

high last week.

Some investors were eyeing ‍a "Santa Claus rally", a seasonal

phenomenon where the S&P 500 typically posts gains in the last

five trading days of the year and the first two in January,

according to Stock Trader's Almanac.

All three indexes are headed for firm monthly gains, with

the Dow and S&P 500 on pace for their eighth consecutive month

in the green.

The bull market, which began in October 2022, stayed intact

despite concerns over high valuations of technology companies

and market volatility, on the back of continued optimism around

AI, interest-rate cuts and a resilient economy. All ​three main

indexes are ‍set for their third consecutive yearly gain.

Most strategists are expecting gains in 2026.

With expectations for continued global economic expansion

and further easing by the Federal Reserve, it would be unusual

to see a significant equity setback or bear market ​without a

recession, said Peter Oppenheimer, chief global equities

strategist at Goldman Sachs, in a recent note.

On the macro front, minutes from the Fed's previous meeting

and a weekly reading of jobless claims will be on the radar in

an otherwise data-light week.

The S&P 500 has added about 17% so far this year, as the

frenzy to capitalize on AI helped the U.S. benchmark overtake

Europe's STOXX 600, despite investors diversifying away

from U.S. stocks earlier in the year.

DigitalBridge ( DBRG/PJ ) gained 9.7%, with Japan's SoftBank

Group set to acquire the digital infrastructure

investor in a deal valued at $4 billion.

Trading volumes are expected to be ​light in the

holiday-affected week with U.S. markets shut on Thursday for New

Year's Day.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.74-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE. There were 93 new highs and 63 new lows on the

NYSE.

The S&P 500 posted 10 new 52-week highs and 2 new lows while

the Nasdaq Composite recorded 28 new highs and 213 ‍new lows.