Wall Street stocks turned mostly higher yesterday but held near opening levels for the second straight session as investors found few incentives to boost the market higher after last week's sharp advance.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 21.83 points to close at 5,696.11, having recovered from a morning deficit of 26 points as interest rates held firm in the bond market despite a flood of new government debt securities.

Broader market measures also turned higher after spending much of the session in negative territory.

But returning to the cautious trend that preceded last week's rally, the gains were largely concentrated on blue chip and other more established companies.

In the four sessions before Monday's 5\4 point dip, the Dow had charged 245 points higher.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 10 to nine on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,268 up, 1,147 down and 807 unchanged.