Wall Street Hemmed In

Updated from 4:08 p.m. EDT

Rising oil prices lifted the energy sector Monday, but the market overall was sluggish ahead of this week's upcoming meeting of the U.S. central bank.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the session down 5.77 points, or 0.05%, at 11,555.00, and the S&P 500 added 1.31 points, or 0.10%, at 1321.18. The Nasdaq Composite was fractionally higher at 2235.75.

Oil futures advanced 47 cents to settle at $63.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold gained $9.80 to end the day at $592.80 an ounce, and silver rose 42 cents to $11.29 an ounce.

Crude prices were higher as traders stepped in amid speculation that the commodity was oversold. The move helped Dow component Exxon Mobil(XOM - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), as well as heavyweights Chevron(CVX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), Valero(VLO - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) and BP(BP - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr).

"Oil turned over, so we saw some people come back in," says Todd Leone, head of listed trading at SG Cowen. "Some of these energy stocks that got beat up are acting much better here today."

But rising prices raised as many worries as hopes, with the Federal Reserve policy meeting only two days away.

"No one really expects the Fed to hike," says Cowen. "People will be watching the statement to get an idea of what the Fed's thinking is on inflation in the future."

The market will be on guard for any signs of upward price pressure, which could include climbing energy prices. Aside from the Fed, economic data on tap this week include building permits, housing starts and the producer price index, a report that details inflation at the wholesale level.