Stocks turned mixed after Thursday's rally

Stocks edged between small gains and losses this afternoon as traders scrutinized a plan to contain Europe's debt crisis that sent the market soaring a day earlier.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 11 points, or 0.1 percent, to 12,198 shortly after noon. The Dow surged 339 points the day before, its biggest gain since Aug. 11. The Dow is headed for its biggest monthly gain since 1987.

"It's a kind of sobering-up after a day of partying," said Jerry Webman, chief economist with Oppenheimer Funds in New York.

European leaders unveiled a plan early Thursday to expand their regional bailout fund and force banks to keep bigger cash buffers. Banks agreed to forgive half of Greece's debt. The Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500 index both gained more than 3 percent.

Optimism ebbed on today as analysts raised questions about the plan, which lacks many key details. It is not yet clear how the rescue fund will work, for example. European markets mostly fell, and the euro declined against the dollar.