US STOCKS-S&P 500 inches lower as year-end record rally cools off

* Trump tweets Phase 1 deal to be signed on Jan. 15
* Consumer confidence slips in December
* S&P 500 set for biggest annual pct gain since 2013
* Dow falls 0.14%, S&P dips 0.06%, Nasdaq up 0.09%

(Updates to mid-afternoon, changes byline, adds NEW YORK to
dateline)
By April Joyner
NEW YORK, Dec 31 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 dipped on Tuesday
as investors took profits from a year-end rally powered by trade
optimism and an improving global outlook, which put the
benchmark index on track for its biggest annual percentage gain
since 2013.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average also fell slightly, while
the Nasdaq eked out a small gain.
Wall Street's major indexes largely shrugged off President
Donald Trump's statement on Twitter that the Phase 1 U.S.-China
trade deal would be signed on Jan. 15 at the White House, and
that he would later travel to Beijing to begin negotiations on
the next phase. U.S. stock valuations already reflect a finalized agreement,
which has long been expected by investors, analysts said.
Other developments, including violent protests outside the
U.S. embassy in Baghdad and an underwhelming U.S.
consumer confidence index reading for December helped to impede U.S. stocks, said Robert Phipps, director
at Per Stirling Capital Management in Austin, Texas.
"There's really no incentive to do any more buying at this
point in the year," he said. "All the good news really is priced
in."
Trading volume is also expected to be lower than usual for
Tuesday's session. U.S. stock markets will be closed on
Wednesday for New Year's Day.
Even as its year-end rally fizzled out, the S&P 500 was
still on track for its biggest percentage gain in December since
2010 and its greatest annual percentage gain since 2013.
In addition to a trade truce between Washington and Beijing,
relatively loose monetary policy by the Federal Reserve and
largely upbeat U.S. economic indicators have fueled a sharp
climb in U.S. stocks this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 39.48 points,
or 0.14%, to 28,422.66, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 1.82 points, or
0.06%, to 3,219.47 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 8.13
points, or 0.09%, to 8,954.13.
Among the S&P 500's 11 major sectors, only materials
.SPLRCM , energy .SPNY and real estate .SPLRCR posted
gains.
U.S.-listed shares of Tencent Music Entertainment Group
TME.N rose 1.0% after a consortium led by the China-based
company agreed to buy a stake in Vivendi's Universal Music
Group. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
1.49-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.70-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted three new 52-week highs and no new lows;
the Nasdaq Composite recorded 69 new highs and 20 new lows.