Dow Drops After Approaching Record High

Still ends day above 14,000

After approaching an all-time high in the afternoon, the Dow Jones industrial average lost steam and actually ended down 20 points for the day, a 0.15% loss.

A day after the market's biggest gains since the first trading session of 2013, stocks did not show a lot of verve.

Major indexes were up and down in a fairly narrow range, despite a slight lift from an upbeat report from the Chicago Institute for Supply Management. The group said its business index rose another 1.2 points in February to 56.8, its highest level since last March.