U.S. stocks kick off August in the red after best month for stocks since November 2020

U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday, the first trading day of August, as they looked to give back some of their gains from July --- the best month for the S&P 500 since November 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated 112 points, or 0.3%, to 32,732, while the S&P 500 shed 22 points, or 0.6%, to 4,107. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite , which led stocks higher last week, lost 68 points, or 0.6%, to 12,323. If stocks finish lower on Monday, they will snap a three-session winning streak for the main benchmarks.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.