US stocks mostly dipped early Monday, the first trading day of June, as investors looked to shake off the steep losses incurred in May.

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (File photo: AFP)

About 20 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 24,794.52, down 0.1 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.2 percent to 2,747.49, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 0.6 percent to 7,405.12.

Energy and health care stocks led most sectors higher, although declines in some major technology and internet companies limited the gains. Google's parent Alphabet tumbled on reports of a likely antitrust investigation, plunging 6.1 percent. 

Technology companies also fell broadly. Microsoft shed 1.2% and Adobe fell 1.4%.

Investors remain unnerved over the uncertainty about the US and its growing use of tariffs in international trade disputes. US President Donald Trump said he would impose a 5% tariff on all imported Mexican goods beginning June 10. The US moves have rattled investors and their confidence in prospects for global economic growth.

On the economic front, the Institute for Supply Management's purchasing managers' index, which gauges the performance of the manufacturing sector, fell to 52.1 in May, lower than analysts' expectations. Three of five components declined, including production, inventories and supplier deliveries. According to Bloomberg, ISM's production gauge dropped to 51.3, the lowest reading of Trump's presidency.