The Nasdaq closed at a record high on Monday and the S&P 500 also rose as investors gauged the latest economic data while looking toward the Federal Reserve's final policy announcement of the year later in the week to gauge the path of interest rates.

U.S. stock indexes drifted through mixed trading ahead of a meeting by the Federal Reserve this week that could set Wall Street’s direction into next year.

Wednesday marked the first time since the inception of the Nasdaq Composite in 1971 that the index set a new record closing high while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell for the eighth straight trading day.