The Dow Jones industrial average rose 12.56 to 5,717.79, down from an earlier gain of 37 points.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 4-to-3 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,344 up and 1,015 down.
NYSE volume totaled 333.82 million shares vs. 516.41 million in the previous session.
Broad-market indexes were mostly higher, too. The NYSE composite rose 0.99 to 358.01, and the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index gained 2.01 to 668.85.
The Nasdaq composite was up 5.72 to 1,181.16, and the American Stock Exchange's market value index rose 0.19 to 585.14, snapping a nine-session losing streak.
The Nasdaq market continued to recover from its recent slump as key technology issues rebounded.
But trading turned sluggish again after speeding up Friday on the quarterly expiration of options and futures contracts.
Growing uncertainty about the direction of inflation and interest rates has muffled the market's moves for weeks.
Many investors have been reluctant to act before the Federal Reserve's next meeting on interest rate policy on July 2-3.
Another flurry of new economic readings is scheduled for this week, including reports on consumer confidence, home sales, durable goods orders and overall economic growth.