In a mirror image of yesterday's activity, the Dow Jones industrial average again traded nearly unchanged until the final hour, but this time fell 45.32 to close at 6,563.84, wiping out most of the prior day's late advance.

Advancers outnumbered decliners by a slim margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,276 up, 1,242 down and 820 unchanged. NYSE volume totaled 451.49 million shares vs. 448.92 million yesterday.

The Standard & Poor's 500-stock list fell 5.52 to 760.60, and the NYSE composite index fell 2.02 to 400.29. The Nasdaq composite index fell 7.94 to 1,249.43, and the American Stock Exchange composite index rose 1.56 to 562.98.

Broader stock measures turned lower as technology shares, which powered the market's attempt to recover from a correction that sliced 630 points off the Dow, faltered after a four-session rally.

Faced with a potential jolt from Friday's report on wholesale price levels, many investors decided to lock in some profits on the market's partial recovery over the past three sessions, analysts said.

The markets have fallen sharply amid fears the economy's vigorous growth will aggravate inflation, prompting the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates again to slow things down.