Surging oil prices and a weak dollar prompted a spate of profit-taking today, pushing stocks slightly lower in light holiday-week trading.

Stocks in the United States extended their rally with modest gains today.

Investors pushed stocks substantially higher today as Wall Street greeted the Oracle-PeopleSoft merger and a climb in retail sales as signs of continued economic improvement.

A sharp drop in consumer confidence gave US investors another excuse to sell today, sending most stocks moderately lower in what some analysts are starting to call a market correction.