Nasdaq sinks after hitting 2,000, blue chips flat

(Updates to close)

By Bill Rigby

NEW YORK, Dec 3 (Reuters) - U.S. technology stocks fell sharply late on Wednesday after the Nasdaq index briefly hit the 2,000 mark for the first time in more than 22 months as investors took the opportunity to sell shares at a profit.

The blue-chip Dow held on to slight gains, while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 ended close to unchanged, after both indexes hit new 18-month highs earlier in the session, helped up by a ...