The Dow Jones industrials were pressured by American International Group Inc., which missed estimates on its latest earnings and announced that it was the subject of a grand jury probe. And while pharmaceutical stocks were up on positive earnings news, Dow components IBM Corp. and Caterpillar Inc. were heavily sold off.

Worried investors saw a little relief from oil prices, which remained below the $55 per barrel mark. A barrel of light crude closed at $54.47, up 6 cents, on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

"Considering where oil is and the mixed earnings we've had, I think the market's holding in there valiantly," said Joseph Battipaglia, chief investment officer at Ryan Beck & Co. "Tech stocks are providing a little leadership, but there's no follow through. We'll need a bigger catalyst to break out of this trading range we're in."

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 21.17, or 0.2 percent, to 9,865.76. The index had fallen below the Dow's lowest close of the year to date, 9,814.59 on Aug. 12, earlier in the session.

Broader stock indicators were substantially higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was up 2.83, or 0.3 percent, at 1,106.49, and the tech-focused Nasdaq composite index gained 20.65, or 1.1 percent, to 1,953.62.

The markets were cheered somewhat by the Labor Department's latest report on first-time jobless claims, which fell 25,000 to 329,000 last week, the lowest level since early September.

However, investors were disappointed with the latest reading of the Conference Board's Index of Leading Economic Indicators fell for a fourth straight month in September. The index, which measures future economic potential, fell 0.1 percent for the month — a sign that the economy continues to lose momentum.

Positive earnings from European drug makers helped minimize blue chip losses in the healthcare sector. AstraZeneca PLC climbed 87 cents to $40.50 after it announced a 19 percent jump in profits, while Novartis AG gained 53 cents to $47.23 after it beat Wall Street expectations by 5 cents per share.

U.S. pharmaceutical company Schering-Plough Corp. swung to a profit in the third quarter, posting earnings of a penny per share, with analysts expecting a loss of a penny per share. Schering-Plough gained 26 cents to $16.98. Eli Lilly & Co. beat estimates by a penny per share, but lowered its outlook and announced additional job cuts. Lilly was down $2.46 at $52.64.