Stocks mostly fell in light trading, though the Dow tacked on 20 points to close at a new high for the year. The modest advance came a day after the Dow shot up 200 points for the second time in three days.

Broader indexes slipped as the market again took its direction from the dollar. Stocks drove higher Monday as the dollar weakened and slipped yesterday as the currency rose.

"People are reaching for a little less risk today after we've had such a run," said Bill Stone, chief investment strategist at PNC Wealth Management.

Record-low interest rates in the United States and the resulting slide in the dollar have been major forces behind the surge in stocks in recent months. A weaker dollar allows investors to borrow money cheaply, while low interest rates encourage them to hold assets other than low-yielding cash, such as stocks, commodities and bonds.

The falling dollar has enabled many investors to look past some of the economy's persistent trouble spots, including unemployment. The jobless rate rose to 10.2 percent in October, the highest level in 26 years.

A number of market watchers still believe this recent surge in stocks has been overdone given the weakness that remains in the economy, such as the large amounts of souring loans on banks' balance sheets. Still, some analysts said the ability of major stock indexes to hold their recent gains is a welcome sign.

The Dow rose 20.03, or 0.2 percent, to 10,246.97, its highest close since Oct. 3, 2008.

The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 0.07, or less than 0.1 percent, to 1,093.01, after six days of gains. The Nasdaq composite index fell 2.98, or 0.1 percent, to 2,151.08.

The bond market is closed today for Veteran's Day though the stock market will be open.

Mixed earnings reports gave investors little incentive to add to their holdings.

Bond insurer MBIA Inc. tumbled $1.28, or 26.7 percent, to $3.52 after posting a third-quarter loss on weaker results at its insurance business.

Priceline.com Inc. jumped to a nine-year high after the online travel booking company said it was seeing an increase in customers booking airfare and hotel rooms. The stock rose $30.49, or 17.6 percent, to $204.22 after trading as high as $209.19.

And shares of American International Group Inc., the insurer that had been bailed out by the federal government, rose after ratings agency Moody's Investors Service said AIG would be able to repay its Federal Reserve credit line and "much or all" of the Treasury Department's investment if financial markets stabilize, Moody's Investors Service said. The company gained $1.41, or 3.9 percent, to close at $37.59.

In other trading, the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 5.38, or 0.9 percent, to 586.93.

Overseas, Britain's FTSE and Germany's DAX index each fell 0.1 percent. France's CAC-40 was essentially flat. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.6 percent.