NEW YORK -- Smaller-company shares set a new high for the fifth straight session, but blue-chip shares fell modestly today as investors found few incentives to bid that pricey sector further into record territory. Dow off 27 as small-caps gain
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 27.05 to 7,330.18.
Advancers outnumbered decliners by more than a 4-to-3 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,460 up, 1,068 down and 848 unchanged. NYSE volume was 464.02 million shares vs. 487.19 million yesterday.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock list fell 3.13 to 844.08, the NYSE's composite index fell 0.80 to 438.86, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 7.14 to 1,403.04.
The Russell 2000 list of smaller companies rose 0.64 to 378.43, setting its fifth straight record high after a four-month drought. The American Stock Exchange composite index, dominated by smaller companies, rose 2.33 to 603.12.
Broader indicators were mixed. The technology-heavy Nasdaq succumbed to profit-taking.
The blue-chip sector struggled despite a strong day in the bond market, where interest rates fell after a strong auction of new Treasury securities.
Bonds had edged higher in the morning after the Labor Department reported that the number of American workers filing first-time claims for jobless benefits was unchanged last week at 322,000, a level analysts say is consistent with modest job growth.
Economists worry that a strong job market will force companies to raise wages -- and prices -- to compete for workers.