NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Stocks closed just shy of where they started Tuesday, walled into a tight trading range throughout the day, as cheers for a nearing end to war were muffled by growing human casualties and fears of economic stability at home.

The Dow Jones industrial average (down 1.49 to 8298.92, Charts) dipped 0.02 percent, the S&P 500 index (down 1.64 to 878.29, Charts) fell 0.2 percent, and the Nasdaq composite (down 6.57 to 1382.94, Charts) slipped 0.5 percent.

All three markets swayed between positive and negative territory throughout the day Tuesday, uncertain as to whether growing signs of the nearing end of Saddam Hussein and the war with Iraq might spark the U.S. economy, or whether corporate earnings and consumer spending will continue to suffer.

"There are a lot of mixed signals right now," said Angel Mata, head of equity trading at Legg Mason. "Some of the negative tone has to do with the fact that we're starting to see more human casualties. There's a weight on the market that this is getting really messy. People aren't used to this kind of war."

Traders said that while investors are starting to take more notice of economic issues at home, the news from Iraq still holds much control over the market. Reports that U.S. troops hit a building housing journalists, killing three, upset investors, as did a statement from Syria that too many civilian Iraqis are dying, traders noted.

The negative news fought back investor elation after U.S. forces bombed a complex where Saddam Hussein and two of his sons may have been meeting. But traders said that if officials eventually can confirm that the Iraqi leader was definitely in the building, or that he died in the bombing, sentiment likely would shift, for the immediate term, to the upside. (Go to CNN.com for full war coverage.)

"I'm encouraged by the day in that there wasn't a continuation of yesterday's selloff," said Robert Philips, president and chief investment officer at Walnut Asset Management. "We're stuck at the bottom of this trading range until something more definitive happens."

Investors likely will, once again, turn their focus to the war in Iraq and await updates on Hussein, as there are no key economic reports set for release Wednesday. Whether concerns about economic growth and earnings warnings will continue has yet to be seen.

But Yahoo! (YHOO: down $0.19 to $23.81, Research, Estimates) should get a second look, as it plans to release its quarterly earnings. A consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com expect profits to come in at 6 cents a share, up from 2 cents in the same period last year.

After the closing bell Tuesday, Sabre Holdings (TSG: down $0.19 to $16.06, Research, Estimates), parent company of online travel site Travelocity, warned its first-quarter earnings would fall short of analysts' average estimate by 4 cents a share.

The thinking on Wall Street throughout the war so far had been that once the fighting is over, the U.S. economy would find itself on a straight path to recovery. But as the end to the war appeared very near only three weeks after its start, the market was slowly beginning to come to the realization that peace in Baghdad may not necessarily bring immediate prosperity on Main Street U.S.A. The economy is still bleeding jobs and business spending is unlikely to see a sudden boom when the smoke clears from the last shot in Iraq.

Faced with such prospects and what is shaping up to be a lousy first-quarter earnings season, investors sold into the market's huge rally Monday, leaving the Dow up only 23 points for the day after a 240-point surge in the first hour of trading.

But some traders weren't convinced a rally at the end of war couldn't hold -- and help in the recovery of a dismal economy.

"I do think there will be a significant rally once the evidence is more definitive," Walnut Asset's Philips said. "A conclusive end to war will fix the problems we are having today. A positive end to war stimulates a stock market rally, which stimulates consumer and corporate spending. I think it's the stock market that comes first -- it's always been that way."

As some of the focus moved away from the war Tuesday, investors took notice of weak corporate news.

A Smith Barney downgrade of the airline sector to "market weight" from "overweight" sent air carrier stocks reeling. American Airlines parent AMR (AMR: down $0.65 to $3.63, Research, Estimates) led the group, slipping almost 15 percent, as the downgrade added weight to a Wall Street Journal report that the airline's union leaders are going back to management to ask for changes in labor concessions which were aimed at averting bankruptcy.

The chip sector also took a hit after RF Micro Devices (RFMD: down $0.72 to $5.33, Research, Estimates), which fell nearly 12 percent, warned it would post a loss for the March quarter and Microchip Technology (MCHP: down $1.87 to $18.66, Research, Estimates), which slipped more than 9 percent, said its fourth-quarter earnings likely would fall a penny below estimates. The Philadelphia Semiconductor index lost 3.7 percent.

Meanwhile, Altria (MO: up $0.98 to $30.00, Research, Estimates), formerly Philip Morris, led gainers on the Dow after an Illinois court temporarily blocked a $3 billion punitive damages award the tobacco maker was ordered to pay the state in a suit over light cigarettes.

The selling Tuesday was broad-based but not terribly enthusiastic. Volume was moderate and market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, declining issues outnumbered gainers by an 8-to-7 margin as 1.2 billion shares traded. On the Nasdaq, losing stocks overtook winners by a 6-to-5 margin as 1.3 billion shares changed hands.

U.S. Treasury bonds drew some strength from the stock market's weakness. The 10-year note advanced 13/32 of a point in price, its yield easing back to 3.92 percent. The dollar slipped slightly against the euro and the yen.

Light sweet crude for May delivery gained 4 cents to $28 a barrel, even as oversupply concerns caused nervousness among OPEC members since so little damage was done to Iraqi oil fields in the war. OPEC President Abdullah al Attiyah proposed a group emergency meeting April 24 to discuss cutting supplies.

Meanwhile, gold for June delivery gained 70 cents to trade at $322.90 an ounce in New York.

Stocks in Europe closed lower and Asian markets ended their trading sessions mixed.

On the economic front, the government said wholesale inventories rose 0.3 percent in February, compared with a 0.1 percent decline in January. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a 0.2 percent rise.