NEW YORK -- Stock prices drifted lower today in sluggish trading as investors adjusted their holdings before the end of the quarter and kept an eye on NATO air strikes in Kosovo. Dow slips 14
Associated PressThe Dow Jones fell 14.15 points to close at 9,822.24. The blue-chip index was down 89 points in early trading before trimming most of its losses.
Broader stock indicators fell after a brief rally in technology shares lost steam.
"Everything seems a little heavy today," said Hank Herrmann, chief investment officer at Wadell & Reed in Overland Park, Kan. "Bonds rolled over, and the techie world is heavy, and I just think it's tired." Bond prices eased amid caution about Kosovo, pushing the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond up to 5.59 percent from 5.58 percent late yesterday.
The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 7.19 to 1,282.80, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index lost 15.63 to 2,419.17.
Decliners beat advancers by a 6-to-5 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,357 up, 1,599 down and 531 unchanged. NYSE volume totaled 694.4 million shares vs. 782.69 million yesterday. The NYSE composite index fell 2.51 to 602.35, and the American Stock Exchange composite index rose 6.34 to 718.74. The Russell 2000 index added 0.93 to 393.92.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.19 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.75 percent, Britain's FTSE-100 rose 0.89, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.51 percent.