U.S. stocks drifted to a mixed close near their record heights.

The S&P 500 ended little changed Monday and is less than 1% below its record set at the end of March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up 0.3%.

Stocks have rallied this month on revived hopes that inflation may ease enough to convince the Federal Reserve to cut its main interest rate later this year. A key test will arrive Wednesday, when the government offers an update on inflation. GameStop and other meme stocks soared. Treasury yields eased in the bond market.

On Monday:

The S&P 500 fell 1.26 points, or less than 0.1%, to 5,221.42.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 81.33 points, or 0.2%, to 39,431.51.

The Nasdaq composite rose 47.37 points, or 0.3%, to 16,388.24.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 2.35 points, or 0.1%, to 2,062.12.

For the year:

The S&P 500 is up 451.59 points, or 9.5%.

The Dow is up 1,741.97 points, or 4.6%.

The Nasdaq is up 1,367.89 points, or 9.2%.

The Russell 2000 is up 35.05 points, or 1.7%.