The Dow Jones industrial average passed 10,000 for the first time yesterday as the stock market continued its long, steady climb.

But the blue chips were unable to hold their gains, and they ended their historic day with a modest loss.

The 103-year-old index reached the milestone nearly 21 minutes into the session, having flirted with 10,000 over the past few trading days. The Dow made it to 10,001.78 then its gains evaporated.

The Dow closed down 28.30 points at 9,930.47 after fluctuating in and out of positive territory throughout the session. Analysts said computer-driven selling sapped some of the market's gains.

The Standard and Poor's 500 slipped 0.84 to 1,306.42, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 7.84 to 2,439.28.

The NYSE composite index fell 1.14 to 614.08, and the American Stock Exchange composite index fell 4.60 to 716.31.