Stocks fell back yesterday as a return to record levels remained on hold with no clear resolution to last week's interest rate worries.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell almost exactly as much as it rose in setting a new high on Monday, slipping 45.09 points - or 0.5 per cent - to 9,147.57.

Broader indexes also extended late Monday's downturn, which halted a three-session rally just as the market was returning to record levels.

Stocks were pressured throughout the day by a weak bond market, where the yield on the 30-year Treasury - a key influence on borrowing costs for companies and consumers - rose back toward 6 per cent.

Bonds struggled after comments by the head of the International Monetary Fund reaggravated last week's worries that the Federal Reserve will boost its key lending rates to guard against inflation.

Yesterday's selling was very broad-based, with only one of the Dow 30 - American Express - showing a loss of at least two points.