NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Technology gained Monday and the broader market struggled as investors played it cautious ahead of Oracle's earnings, released after the close, and a speech from new Fed chief Ben Bernanke, expected tonight.

The Dow Jones industrial average (down 5.12 to 11,274.53, Charts) and the Standard & Poor's 500 (down 2.17 to 1,305.08, Charts) index both lost a few points. The Nasdaq composite (up 7.63 to 2,314.11, Charts) gained 0.3 percent, thanks to strength in Internet and computer hardware shares.

Investors were reluctant to push indexes one way or the other ahead of Bernanke's speech Monday night and economic news due later in the week. That reluctance kept the broader market in a tight range most of the session, even after oil prices tumbled.

"The market is a little overextended right now. A lot of good news is already priced into the market," said Eugene Peroni, senior managing director at Claymore Advisors. "There hasn't been much of a rally, even with crude prices down."

U.S. light crude oil for April delivery fell sharply, losing $2.35, or about 3.7 percent, to settle at $60.42 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Instead of rallying stock investor sentiment, as it often does, the fall in crude prices just served to drag down the oil stocks, which in turn limited the broader market.

Technology held up better than other sectors of the market, due in part to anticipation about Oracle (Research)'s earnings.

After the close of trade, the software behemoth reported earnings of 19 cents per share, up from a year ago and more than analysts surveyed by Thomson/First Call were expecting. Yet, the stock lost 3 percent in extended-hours trading, as investors took a 'sell the news' approach.

In addition to Oracle and Ben Bernanke's speech, investors Tuesday will digest the February Producer Price index (PPI), due out before the open.

As of 6:00 p.m. ET, Nasdaq and S&P futures point to a flat open Tuesday, when fair value is taken into account.

Treasury prices rose, lowering the yield on the benchmark 10-year note to 4.66 percent from 4.67 percent late Friday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

COMEX gold for April delivery rose $1 to settle at $556.10 an ounce.

Dell Computer (up $0.68 to $29.76, Research) rose 2.3 percent on news that it plans to double its workforce in India over the next three years.

Wal-Mart (up $1.07 to $47.76, Research) offered support for the Dow. Shares rose 2.3 percent on reports that the retailer would hire up to 150,000 workers in China as part of its overseas expansion.

Schering-Plough (up $0.85 to $19.33, Research) benefited from a ratings upgrade from Goldman Sachs. Shares jumped 4.6 percent after the brokerage raised the company to "in-line" from "under perform."

Shares of Michaels Stores (up $4.39 to $38.35, Research), a retailer of arts-and-crafts supplies, rallied nearly 13 percent in unusually active New York Stock Exchange trade after saying that it may put itself up for sale.

Prudential (up $2.37 to $26.32, Research) surged nearly 10 percent on speculation that rival Aviva would improve its bid proposal after being rebuffed by the British insurer.

Oil and energy stocks declined as crude prices fell for the second straight session. The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector (Charts) index tumbled 3.1 percent.

Home builders also were on the downside. The Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction (down $22.26 to $884.52, Research) index lost 2.5 percent.

Lucent Technologies (down $0.08 to $2.82, Research) slipped 3 percent in very active New York Stock Exchange trade after an article in financial weekly Barron's said the stock could be vulnerable should large customers demand lower prices.

Market breadth was mixed. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers topped winners by nine to seven on volume of 1.41 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, decliners and advancers were narrowly mixed on volume of 1.98 billion shares.

In economic news, investors took in stride the February leading economic indicators index, which fell a narrower-than-expected 0.2 percent. However, the January index was revised much lower, due to a previously reported slide in aircraft orders during that period.

Tuesday's trade will likely be influenced by a Monday night speech from Ben Bernanke. The new Fed Chairman is set to speak about the yield curve and monetary policy at the Economic Club of New York, starting at around 7:00 p.m. ET.

After last week's big rally, which sent the Dow and S&P 500 index to their best levels since May 2001, stocks could find some new direction from Bernanke's speech, market observers said.

Bernanke isn't expected to break any new ground ahead of next week's Federal Reserve policy meeting, "but if he were to say anything about the housing market slowing more than has been thought, that might cause some in the market to think that the Fed will only raise rates one more time and then stop," Peter Cardillo, chief market analyst at S.W. Bach & Co., said.

Central bank policymakers have raised the Fed funds rate, an overnight bank lending rate, 14 straight times since June 2004. The Fed is widely expected to boost the rate, which currently stands at 4.5 percent, by another quarter-percentage point at the conclusion of next week's two-day meeting.

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