Markets, Mixed, Watch for Progress on Syria Stocks were mixed on Wednesday, appearing to pause after six consecutive days of gains, after President Obama pledged to explore Russia's diplomatic plan to remove chemical weapons from Syria. In early trading the Standard & Poor's 500-share index was down 0.1 percent, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.2 percent and the Nasdaq composite was off 0.3 percent. Shares in Europe nudged higher, with the FTSEurofirst 300 index up 0.3 percent in afternoon trading. Asian markets closed the session mixed. Mr. Obama said a Russian offer to pressure President Bashar al-Assad of Syria to place his government's chemical weapons under international control increased the odds of putting off a limited military strike that he is considering, but voiced skepticism about the plan. Mr. Obama also asked leaders in Congress to put off a vote on his request to authorize the use of military force in order to allow diplomacy to play out. "I don't see any compelling reason the market should sell-off here and certainly with the potential international diplomacy bomb being defused, we will move sideways here for the next few days until we get the Fed next week," said Keith Bliss, senior vice president at Cuttone & Company in New York. The Federal Reserve is scheduled to begin a two-day policy meeting on Sept. 17, at the conclusion of which many market participants expect the central bank to announce it will begin to scale back its bond-buying program, which has helped shore up the economy and boost the stock market this year. Apple shares dropped 4.5 percent. Both Credit Suisse and Bank of America Merrill Lynch lowered the stock to a neutral rating after the company unveiled new iPhone models Tuesday. Apple is a victim of their own success. They have gotten in the unfortunate circumstance where every time they have one of these events, people want them to come out with some groundbreaking technology that is just going to change everybody's lives - it's just not going to happen," Mr. Bliss said. United States benchmark crude rose slightly, gaining 12 cents a barrel to $107.51. The S.& P. 500 has gained 3.1 percent over the past six sessions, its longest winning streak in two months, as concerns ebbed about a Western military strike against Syria and as data showed improving growth in China, the world's second-biggest economy. Texas Instruments, the No. 3 chip maker in the United States, dipped 0.1 percent after it lowered its third-quarter forecast. Harvest Natural Resources, an oil and gas producer, surged 24.1 percent after the company said it was in exclusive talks to sell itself to Argentina's Pluspetrol in a deal valued at about $373 million including debt.