NEW YORK, United States  – Investors turned cautious yesterday as a pair of economic reports sent mixed signals about how the recovery was going.

Major stock indexes ended narrowly mixed a day after the Dow Jones industrials soared more than 150 points on upbeat manufacturing reports in the US and China. Uncertainty over key reports this week on employment and the service industry also kept buyers at bay.

The economic news yesterday was muddled. The Commerce Department reported that factory orders rose by more than twice what had been expected in November, reflecting demand in the steel, computer and chemical industries. The gain of 1.1 per cent easily beat the 0.5 per cent forecast of analysts polled Thomson Reuters.

Meanwhile, the number of buyers who agreed to purchase previously occupied homes fell sharply in November, an indication that sales will fall this winter. The National Association of Realtors said its index of pending home sales fell 16 per cent, the first drop after nine months of gains. Some drop had been expected as investors raced to buy homes ahead of a tax credit deadline, which was later extended.

A strengthening dollar held stocks to modest moves. A strong dollar makes commodities and shares of the companies that produce them less attractive to foreign buyers. It also hurts the profits of companies that do business overseas.

Investors are looking for clues about the direction of the economy in 2010 after a nine-month rally pushed stocks to steep gains for 2009. Now, analysts say, further signs of strengthening in the economy are needed to help stocks hold their gains. Major stock indexes stand at 15-month highs.