The Dow Jones industrial average rose 11.08 to 5,659.43, but that was down from an opening-bell jump of more than 31 points.
Declining issues outnumber advancers by a 5-to-3 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 875 up, 1,466 down and 804 unchanged. NYSE volume totaled 439.25 million shares vs. 375.29 million in the previous session.
Most broader measures finished negative, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq slid for the sixth straight session on concerns about slack demand in computer-related businesses. Like the Dow, blue-chip and larger-company indexes fared better.
The NYSE composite fell 0.36 dto 354.96, it's 10th straight losing session, but the S&P 500 list rose 0.12 to 662.08, snapping an eight-session losing streak.
The Nasdaq composite fell 12.46 to 1,166.81, and the American Stock Exchange's market value index fell for the eighth straight session, losing 3.69 to 585.24.
Bonds moved lower early but recovered some in the afternoon and the yield on the 30-year treasury finished near 7.11 percent, up from 7.10 percent yesterday.