US stocks end bumpy session relatively flat

Stock prices pared earlier gains to end a choppy day relatively flat today as Wall Street remained uncertain that a 17.4 billion-dollar(€12.5 billion) lifeline for US carmakers will make a lasting difference for the beleaguered industry.

In early trading, investors cheered the government’s pledge to provide General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC with short-term financing and sent the Dow Jones industrial average up as much as 182 points.