US stocks have pulled back early losses to end slightly lower on lingering fears that the European debt crisis will continue to spread.
The Dow Jones industrial average dipped below 11,000 earlier in the day and had fallen as much as 123 points.
However, news that manufacturing has picked up in the Dallas and Chicago areas gave investors hope that the US economy is on the mend.
The Dow pared back much of the day’s losses and closed down 39 points, or 0.4%, to end at 11,052.
The S&P 500 edged down 2 points to close at 1,188. The Nasdaq fell 9, or 0.4%, to 2,525.
Falling shares outpaced rising ones by three to two on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was 923 million shares.
