US equities mixed ahead of Christmas weekend

NEW YORK, Dec 23 (Reuters): US stocks gyrated to a mixed close on Friday as investors headed into the Christmas holiday weekend, having digested cooler-than-expected inflation data which firmed bets for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts in the new year.
All three indexes turned less decisive in light trading as the afternoon progressed, after an initial rally on data showing inflation is easing closer to the US central bank's target.
The Nasdaq joined the S&P 500 in positive territory, while the blue-chip Dow finished nominally lower.
"Some traders are willing to back away late on a Friday in order not to be exposed over a long weekend, and we are in a period of heightened geopolitical risks," said Tim Ghriskey, senior portfolio strategist Ingalls & Snyder in New York. "But most traders are investors are in the market because this has been a huge rally."
Small caps handily outperformed the broader market, with the Russell 2000 ending up 0.8 per cent.
All three indexes notched their eighth consecutive weekly gains, the longest weekly winning streak for the S&P 500 since late 2017.
For the Nasdaq and the Dow, it marks the longest streak of consecutive weekly gains since the beginning of 2019.