US tech stocks manage small gains

Bargain hunting lifted US tech stocks moderately higher today, but the overall market fell on news that yet another company, Knight Trading, was being investigated by the government.

Analysts attributed the gains to a rebound from Monday’s big selloff, rather than any dissipation of the chronic malaise that has clouded trading for weeks.

‘‘This is a really nervous market. We have our government saying we are pretty sure there is going to be another terror attack and we have continuing Enron-type issues,’’ said Mike Weiner, managing director of equities at Banc One Investment Advisors. ‘‘You’ve got to have a sense of trust to buy equities, and a lot of people don’t have that right now.’’

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 21.95, or 0.2%, to 9,687.84, extending a 215-point drop on Monday that sent the index to its lowest level since early February.

Broader stock indicators fared better. The Nasdaq composite index gained 15.56, or 1%, to 1,578.12, after closing on Monday at its lowest level since October 2.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index was little changed, rising 0.01 to 1,040.69.

The uneven close was in keeping with the choppy nature of trading all day. At various points during the session, all three major indexes were higher, but ultimately could not keep their gains.

Knight Trading slid dlrs 1.28, or 21.6%, to dlrs 4.64 on news that the Securities and Exchange Commission and National Association of Securities Dealers are looking into whether the trading firm made illegal share deals during the technology boom. The company denied wrongdoing.

General Motors fell dlrs 1.80 to dlrs 59.45 after raising its estimates for the rest of the year but reporting a 12% decline in total US vehicle sales during May.

And Bristol Myers Squibb dropped dlrs 1.18 to dlrs 26.65 after 29 states filed a lawsuit claiming the drug company improperly delayed generic competition for its Taxol cancer drug.

Selective bargain hunting lifted some stocks.

Tyco advanced 72 cents to dlrs 16.77, reversing some of the selloff that followed news on Monday that CEO Dennis Kozlowski had resigned because of a sales tax violations scandal. Today, prosecutors in Manhattan charged Kozlowski with avoiding more than dlrs 1 million in sales tax on paintings he bought.

Microsoft rose 56 cents to dlrs 49.98, recovering some of its decline on word it had settled an accounting issues dispute with the SEC.

Other tech gainers included Cisco, up 75 cents to dlrs 16.08, Dell Computer, up 75 cents to dlrs 26.93, and Intel, up 88 cents to dlrs 27.50.

Declining issues led advancers 3 to 2 on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume totalled 1.47 billion shares, compared with 1.30 billion shares on Monday.

The Russell 2000 index fell 0.63 to 473.76.