NEW YORK - Most stocks fell Thursday, a day after benchmark measures climbed to a five-week high, as a lower-than- estimated profit forecast from FedEx overshadowed gains in technology shares before Apple's release of the iPad tablet computer in China. About two stocks fell for each that rose. The S&P 500 declined less than 0.1 percent to 1,124.66 at 4 p.m. in New York after dropping as much as 0.6 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 22.10 points, or 0.2 percent, to 10,594.83, the highest since Aug. 10. 'It's an uneven recovery,' said Russ Koesterich, the San Francisco-based head of investment strategy for scientific active equities at BlackRock, the largest asset manager. 'The economic numbers continue to be mixed. A negative outlook from the shipping industry supports the notion that the U.S. recovery is going to be anemic.' The S&P 500 has lost 7.6 percent from its 2010 high in April amid mounting evidence of a slowdown in the world's largest economy. The drop pushed the index's valuation to about 12.2 times estimated profits for the next year, near the lowest since March 2009. The gauge has risen 7.2 percent so far this month and is on pace for the best September since 1954. Transportation companies, which are considered a proxy for economic growth, had the biggest decline in the S&P 500 among 24 industries, falling 1.2 percent. FedEx, the second-biggest U.S. package-shipment company, dropped 3.8 percent to $82.72 after forecasting earnings for the current quarter that fell short of analysts' estimates, and said it will eliminate 1,700 jobs. Net income for the three months ending in November will be $1.15 a share to $1.35 a share, the Memphis, Tenn.- based company said in a statement. Analysts projected $1.37 a share, the average of 19 forecasts compiled by Bloomberg. A gauge of 12 home builders in the S&P 500 fell 3 percent, the most in more than a month. U.S. home seizures reached a record for the third time in five months in August as lenders completed the foreclosure process for thousands of delinquent owners, according to RealtyTrac. PulteGroup, the largest U.S. homebuilder by revenue, sank 3.9 percent to $8.24, the second-biggest decline in the S&P 500. KB Home, the U.S. home builder that targets first-time buyers, fell 3.9 percent to $11.27. Apple led technology shares up 0.7 percent, the biggest gain among 10 S&P 500 industries ahead of the release of its iPad tablet computer in China. Technology shares in the S&P 500 have climbed for seven straight days, the longest streak since July. Microsoft has rallied this week after a person familiar with the matter said the largest software company may sell debt to return cash to shareholders. Cisco Systems has advanced after saying Sept. 14 that it will start paying a dividend. 'Tech companies are attractive,' said Philip Orlando, the New York-based chief equity market strategist at Federated Investors. 'They are cash-rich. As investors see the economic data firming up, they'll say - wait a minute, this is a soft patch, not a double-dip recession.' Stock futures pared losses temporarily after reports showed demand is strong enough to prevent deflation and jobless claims were lower than economists had predicted. The producer price index increased 0.4 percent, the most in five months and twice the gain in July, Labor Department figures showed. The median forecast was for a 0.3 percent rise, according to a Bloomberg News survey. A measure excluding volatile food and energy costs climbed 0.1 percent. Another report showed that jobless claims dropped by 3,000 to 450,000 in the week ended Sept. 11, Labor Department figures showed. The median forecast was for a rise to 459,000, according to a Bloomberg News survey. The total number of people receiving unemployment insurance fell, and those getting extended payments plunged. Stocks also pared losses after a report showed that the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's general economic index rose to minus 0.7 this month from minus 7.7 in August. Readings less than zero signal contraction in the area covering eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware. The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News projected the gauge would turn positive. Ford led a gauge of companies in the automobile industry up 3 percent, the biggest gain among 24 groups in the S&P 500. Barclays upgraded the second- biggest U.S. carmaker to 'overweight' from 'equal-weight,' citing improved earnings power because of cost cutting and pricing. Ford rallied 4.8 percent to $12.44. GameStop gained 4.4 percent to $19.40. The world's largest video-game retailer said it will buy back $500 million in shares and debt. 