Wall Street ended an erratic session with a modest advance today as investors awaited further signs about the health of the economy.

A rise in oil prices sent stocks falling in the United States today as traders worried about the damage that Hurricane Rita might wreak on Texas refineries. The Dow Jones industrial average lost more than 100 points.

WARREN Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc, which is under investigation for its role in improper reinsurance accounting at American International Group Inc, said over the weekend that the American government is inquiring about its own books.

Investors pulled their cash out of the United States stock market today, leaving prices sharply lower after the Federal Reserve confirmed Wall Street’s fears that inflation poses an increasing threat to the economy.

Wall Street extended its fourth-quarter rally into a second day, supported by falling oil prices and a bullish assessment of the economy from a Federal Reserve official.

AIRBUS SAS and Boeing Co, the world’s two biggest planemakers, won orders from Emirates, the Middle East’s fastest-growing airline, for 67 new planes, which the carrier valued at as much as $19 billion.