Stocks began the week cautiously, with traders avoiding large bets ahead of key economic data and meetings of major central banks, which will put market optimism about rate cuts next year to the test.

With Tuesday's consumer price index, Wall Street will get a sense of whether the disinflationary trend is continuing. The report will be released a day before the Federal Reserve's final scheduled decision of 2023, with officials widely expected to hold rates and announce their Summary of Economic Projections. The question is whether the Fed will attempt to moderate policy-easing expectations following investors' aggressive dovish repricing.

The S&P 500 remained above 4,600, while the Nasdaq 100 outperformed on the back of a rally in chipmakers such as Intel and Broadcom. Treasury 10-year yields and the dollar remained unchanged. Bitcoin fell below $41,000 after a more than 150% increase this year.

According to a Fed Bank of New York survey, US consumers' near-term inflation expectations fell in November to the lowest level since April 2021.