NEW YORK (AP) - Wall Street ended an erratic day yesterday with a lop-sided loss, as blue chip stocks bore the brunt of investors' concerns over the health of the financial sector. The Dow Jones industrials fell more than 100 points, but the other major indexes finished with single-digit losses.

High-tech and small-cap stocks fared better than the broader market, proof that investors were wary and choosy. The market started the day disappointed by the government's retail sales report, and a jump in oil prices further dampened the market's mood, but many stocks managed to finish above their session lows.

With many investors on vacation, and therefore fewer people trading, price moves were exaggerated.

"We're in that part of the summer where volume tends to be light, conviction tends to be minimal," said Joseph V Battipaglia, chief investment officer at Ryan Beck & Co.

Still, there was enough negative news to depress the market.

The Commerce Department said retail sales slipped 0.1 percent as rising prices helped offset the effect of economic stimulus payments to US households. Excluding a big drop in sales of automobiles, retail sales rose 0.4 percent. But even on that basis it was the weakest showing in five months.

Wall Street had expected sales to remain flat after a minor increase in June. The report followed a warning from department store bellwether Macy's Inc. that its full-year profits would fall short of expectations because of slower sales.

The retail numbers pointed to a consumer who remains uneasy about spending. And because consumers' spending accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy, the fear on Wall Street is that the nation is in for a prolonged period of slow or even no growth.

The advance in oil prices also tinged investor sentiment. Light, sweet crude rose $2.99 to $116 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after the government said US crude supplies fell unexpectedly last week.

Moreover, lingering concerns about the financial sector after big banks reported more credit-related losses earlier this week took another toll. According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 109.51, or 0.94 percent, to 11,532.96 after falling more than 150 points earlier in the session and just under 140 points on Tuesday, also on concerns about the financials.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped 3.76, or 0.29 percent, to 1,285.83, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 1.99, or 0.08 percent, to 2,428.62.

Among financial stocks, Bank of America Corp. dropped $2.27, or 7.3 percent, to $28.86, while Morgan Stanley fell $2.35, or 5.5 percent, to $40.15.

Technology and small cap names showed relative strength as investors placed bets on the areas of the economy that have fared better than financials. Applied Materials Inc. rose 86 cents, or 4.7 percent, to $19.33 after the semiconductor equipment company's second-quarter results met Wall Street expectations, and it forecast orders would climb five percent to 10 percent in its fiscal fourth quarter.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.94 percent from 3.90 percent late on Tuesday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.

Wall Street continued a streak of volatility that began weeks ago, with triple-digit moves in the Dow becoming commonplace. Investors have grown optimistic as the price of oil fell $35 since its mid-July high of $147.27, only to have that upbeat sentiment punctured by the latest bad news on the financial sector, the economy or both. Oil's decline raised hopes that consumers would begin to spend a little more freely, but economic data like yesterday's tends to drive home to investors the fact that the economy is still far from health.

Moreover, the continuing reports of losses from banks and brokerages are underscoring the fact that the housing slump and resulting credit crisis are also nowhere near a resolution.

Earlier this week, JPMorgan Chase & Co. said its third-quarter credit-related losses had already exceeded the $1.1 billion it reported in the second quarter.

Jim Smigiel, head of the investment strategy group at SEI, said Wall Street's erratic trading is likely to continue as investors seem to latch onto any scrap of news for insights into where the economy is headed.

"This is a very difficult market in terms of processing news and trying to guess what is positive and what is negative," he said. "The way through this is to try to look at everything a little bit further down the road and just buckle up, because it's going to be a pretty wild ride."

Not all news appeared to faze investors yesterday, however.

The Commerce Department reported that businesses added to their inventories in June at the fastest pace since January, a bigger gain than had been expected. Stockpiles on businesses' shelves and backlots grew by 0.7 percent in June, nearly double the 0.4 percent rise in May.

Investors scanned companies' quarterly reports hoping for insights into the economy.

Deere & Co. fell $2.25, or 3.2 percent, to close at $67.10 after reporting weaker-than-expected profits. The maker of farm and heavy equipment said its third-quarter earnings rose seven percent as growth in the global agricultural market aided results. The company earned $575.2 million, or $1.32 a share, compared with $537.2 million, or $1.18 a share, a year earlier.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, on average, predicted earnings of $1.36 per share.

Macy's inched up 39 cents to $20.66 after reporting second-quarter results.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 2.75, or 0.37 percent, to 747.69.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 2.11 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.55 percent, Germany's DAX index lost 2.49 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 2.56 percent.