Stocks turned lower in late trading yesterday as lingering concerns about leading technology companies sapped the market's modest gains. At the close of trading on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 20.65 at 10,866.74. Broader stock indicators, particularly the technology-dominated Nasdaq composite index, were also lower.

For several days, stocks have traded in a narrow band as investors struggled to determine whether a recent rise in inflation would prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in an effort to slow the economy.

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve offered fresh evidence of steady but not inflationary economic growth, by reporting that manufacturing growth eased slightly in April. That calmed an anxious market and set the stage for some mild, broad-based gains.

Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan maintained that sense of calm with a morning address to the House Banking Committee by focusing solely on the global economy.