The Nasdaq sank, leading U.S. stocks lower on Monday, as investors sold recent winners in a sign of growing unease with pockets of the U.S. economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 47.38 points, or 0.38 percent, to 12,548.37. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> fell 8.30 points, or 0.62 percent, to 1,329.47. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> lost 46.16 points, or 1.63 percent, to 2,782.31.

The S&P 500 closed slightly below 1,330, seen as a key technical support by some technical analysts. The close was the lowest in almost a month for the benchmark S&P. (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Jan Paschal)