• The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite started December with new records.
• Elon Musk lost his latest bid to have his record 2018 pay package reinstated.
• Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger is out as the company struggles to make up ground lost to Nvidia.

Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:

1. New highs

The first trading day of December brought fresh closing records for both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. The Dow dipped to start the last month of the year. On Tuesday, the job openings report for October could offer a catalyst for the market, ahead of the more closely watched November nonfarm payrolls report Friday. Traders will also watch comments from Fed officials for signals about what the central bank will do at its Dec. 17-18 meeting. Follow live market updates.

2. December decision

Fed Governor Christopher Waller said Monday that "I lean toward supporting a cut" at the coming meeting. But he added that data showing higher-than-expected inflation could change his mind. Traders anticipate the Fed will cut its benchmark rate by a quarter of a percentage point this month as it eases off its efforts to tamp down inflation. The move would follow a quarter-point cut in November and half-point reduction in September.

3. Musk's money

Elon Musk's bid to reclaim his record pay package has failed again. A judge upheld her ruling that the 2018 Tesla compensation package worth $56 billion was improperly granted. The pay plan was the largest ever for a U.S. public company executive. Musk said he plans to appeal the ruling and called it "absolute corruption."  

4. Intel ouster

Intel announced CEO Pat Gelsinger's resignation on Monday. The move comes as the legacy chipmaker struggles to make up ground lost to Nvidia. Intel shares have dropped more than 50% this year. Intel CFO David Zinsner and Intel products CEO MJ Holthaus are taking over as interim co-CEOs.

5. Dollar store doldrums

The dollar store chains are struggling. Though consumers are seeking deals after years of high inflation, Dollar Tree and Dollar General aren't reaping the benefits. Both retailers, which will report earnings this week, have cut their sales outlooks this year, and shares of each have fallen more than 40% this year. The chains have several problems: lower-income shoppers have taken the biggest hit from inflation, the companies have struggled to build e-commerce businesses and sparse staffing and worker safety concerns have hurt the store experience.

– CNBC's Alex Harring, Jeff Cox, Lora Kolodny, Rohan Goswami, Hayden Field and Melissa Repko contributed to this report.