Ethanol working to lower gas prices

Even though gas prices have broken record after record this year, motorists should know that the state's corn and ethanol producers are working hard to lower the cost at the pump.

"As ethanol production increased over the last six months--with new plants coming online--ethanol prices have fallen, meaning ethanol blends at the pump are priced lower than regular gas," said Jon Holzfaster of Paxton, farmer-chairman of the Nebraska Corn Board.

During his presentation to the Advancing Renewable Energy conference last fall, Keith Collins, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief economist, said that in 2006, ethanol made up approximately 3.6 percent of the gasoline demand--a six-fold increase since 1996. There's another way to look at it, though.

In the 1996-2006 time frame, gasoline demand increased by 20 billion gallons, while ethanol production rose 4 billion gallons. "That 4 billion gallon increase met 20 percent of the increase in gasoline use over the decade," Collins said. "Since 2000, ethanol has met more than 30 percent of the increase in gasoline demand. So I ask you to imagine, if 30 percent of the marginal gasoline demand over the past five years did not come from biofuels, what might crude oil refining margins and gasoline imports look like?"

Holzfaster said gas prices would certainly be higher if ethanol wasn't available.

"The simple fact is, without ethanol, we'd need another 6 billion gallons of gasoline this year. I can't imagine how high prices would be if we had to import that much more gas," he said. "Oil refiners can't add capacity fast enough to meet demand--but ethanol producers have had many new plants come on line already this year, and more are on the way. Ethanol is helping keep gas prices down by increasing the fuel supply."

In fact, the rack price of ethanol in Nebraska was $2.46 per gallon last week, a dollar or more below the cost of regular unleaded. "That's why gas blended with ethanol, to make E-10 or gas with 10 percent ethanol, costs less than regular unleaded," Holzfaster said. "It's also why E85, or gas with 85 percent ethanol, costs even less for those that have flex fuel vehicles. Using an ethanol blend can save drivers money at the pump."

Randy Klein, director of market development for the Nebraska Corn Board, said there are enough ethanol plants under construction or expanding today to more than double the amount of ethanol produced--in Nebraska and nationally--and corn producers will be there, ready to supply them.

"As these plants come online over the next few months, gas blended with ethanol should continue to be priced below regular gasoline. But no matter what the price is, the addition of eight to 10 billion gallons of ethanol into the fuel supply helps buffer high gas prices," Klein said.

The Nebraska Corn Board collects and disburses the funds generated by the 1/4 of a cent per bushel corn checkoff. Nebraska corn checkoff funds are invested in programs of market development, research and education.

Source : www.hpj.com

Gas demand still rising

Just when you thought they couldn’t go higher, gas prices did it again.

Refining capabilities and supply and demand are to blame for the gas pump agony, experts said.

One big reason for the price jump is refineries have been down for maintenance, said Laurie Falter, oil industry economist for the Energy Information Administration.

The independent entity within the U.S. Department of Energy tracks the oil industry.

“Quite a few refineries in the Gulf Coast and Midwest have been offline,” Falter said. “Some (have been offline) because of planned maintenance, but we’ve also had quite a few unplanned outages from fires and equipment breakdowns.”

Less oil being refined means a smaller gasoline supply in the market, she said. Add that to the fact that the nation has been drawing from its stockpiles, and the market gets stressed.

“The market has been very tight for supply, but demand has still increased,” Falter said. “Because of that, the only mechanism to balance things out is to increase prices.”

But with the national average more than $3 a gallon, it appears not everyone is swallowing the higher prices.

“Demand has increased less so far this spring than we normally would expect it to increase,” Falter said. “It could be attributed to a response to high prices, people trying to curb some of their extra car trips.”

While the national average for the past month was $3.01, it looks like there’s an end in sight for the higher prices, she said.

The offline refineries should be back up and running soon, increasing production and lowering prices.

That, coupled with an expected dip in travel should bring the national average down below $3 sometime in June or July.

“We see prices leveling off to $2.95 and $2.96 (a gallon) in June and July and coming back up in August,” corresponding with peak summer travel times, Falter said.

Prices have jumped locally, too. The cheapest regular gas in Vidalia is $2.74, and the most expensive is $2.89.

Pumping gas at the Murphy USA on U.S. 65, Ferriday resident Hazel Minor said even though she only drives to work, church and the grocery store, she doesn’t like the rising prices.

“There’s not much that I can do about it, so most of the time I just suck it up,” she said.

One local station manager said people can be vocal about the cost of gasoline.

“We get a lot of complaints about rising and fluctuating (gas) prices,” said Jeff White, manager of the Raceway on Carter Street.

Across the river, prices are even higher, just less than $3 per gallon.

Another Natchez resident who works in Concordia Parish, Kendrick Grayes, said a good chunk of his paycheck went into his gas tank.

“It’s too high,” Grayes said. “I spend almost $200 every two weeks just getting to work, driving back and forth.”

Rising prices bring an increase in business for the less expensive gasoline retailers, but it also brings an increase in gasoline theft, station owner White said.

“There’s not a single age or race demographic that’s more likely to steal gas,” White said.

For those who complain convenience store owners are raising prices just because they can, White said most gas stations don’t make much of their profit from gasoline.

“The profits are made through retail, by selling snacks, sodas, beer and other alcoholic beverages,” he said.

While the price of crude oil may fluctuate, some costs come standard with gasoline prices. For example, federal and Louisiana state taxes add 38 cents — 18 cents federal and 20 cents state — to the price of every gallon of gas sold. Mississippi taxes 18.8 cents per gallon, plus national.

“As high as prices are here, I’ve had travelers tell me we have the cheapest gas from here to Florida,” White said.

Source : www.natchezdemocrat.com

Falcon Oil & Gas Ltd. Provides Operational Update on Mako-6 and Magyarcsanad

Falcon Oil & Gas Ltd. (TSXV: FO) ("Falcon" or the "Company") has issued an operational update as part of its ongoing commitment to public disclosure announcing the following:
Falcon has resumed testing operations on the Mako-6 well in the lowermost part of the Basal Conglomerate, after fracture stimulating ("fracing") this interval in April 2007 with 79,000 pounds of proppant and 3,100 bbls of frac fluid. Prior to this current testing operation, the Company opened the well for flow, had gas flow to surface immediately and, due to the presence of manageable levels of H2S, the well was shut-in to wait for the correct equipment to flow the well safely. The well was then shut-in with frac fluid load still remaining for over a month.

The well is currently being tested through perforations from 5,326 to 5,328 meters in the Lower Basal Conglomerate. The fracced interval being tested is from 5,279 meters to 5,365 meters, a total of 86 meters; 69 meters Basal Conglomerate and 17 meters Synrift. The Basal Conglomerate is 273 meters thick from 5075 meters to 5348 meters. This remaining 204 meters of Basal Conglomerate will be tested following the completed analysis of results from current test. The Company is encouraged with the initial gas shows from this test and believes the gas shows will remain constant or will improve in the upper part of the Basal Conglomerate where rock quality increases and sand packages thicken. Falcon intends to announce details on the gas shows from this test after flow-back of frac fluid and bottom sediment has been completed.

On June 3, 2007, the test was resumed with an 8/64" choke. Within 8 hours of opening the well and recovering 208 bbls of frac fluid, gas surfaced in burnable quantities, which are too small to measure. After flow testing the well for 29 hours and recovering approximately 800 bbls of the frac fluid, it was noted that the flow-back was producing greater than expected quantities of bottom sediment. On June 4, the well was opened up to a 12/64" choke to assist in the clean-up. The well continued to produce gas in burnable quantities through the test separator throughout the day. On June 5, the well experienced a partial to complete tubing plug, which temporarily caused the well to cease flowing. After three hours of no frac fluid recovery, the well unloaded large quantities of bottom sediment, resulting in significant quantities of gas flow in and an 8-foot to 10-foot flare and increased flowing tubing pressures. Falcon will continue to flow test the well, recover as much of the frac load fluid as possible, ensure the tubing and perforations are free and clear of any obstructions, and, if required, assist the well bore unloading process via coil tubing-nitrogen. About two-thirds of the frac load water has been recovered.

Preparations to fracture stimulate the Magyarcsanad well are underway. Falcon is currently rigging up and will commence the well intervention and testing program in the coming weeks. Falcon is engineering a two stage frac that is designed to treat the effective Endrod interval through the existing perforation at 4,060 meters and introduce 4 sets of new perforations. The new perforations will straddle the existing perforations (2 sets above and below). The combined two stage frac will consist of approximately 350,000 pounds of proppant. The treatment is designed to stimulate the entire Endrod formation that is behind casing with a total effective frac height of nearly 300 meters. It is anticipated actual testing operation will commence the end of June.

Source : www.falconoilandgas.com

Forest Oil Expects to Close Purchase of Houston Exploration for $750M and 24M Shares

Natural gas and crude oil producer Forest Oil Corp. said it expects to close its $1.5 billion cash-and-stock acquisition of Houston Exploration Co. on Wednesday.

The company also said the stock component of the deal is over-subscribed based on preliminary election results.
Forest expects to pay about $750 million in cash to Houston stockholders and issue about 24 million shares of Forest common stock, based on the estimated 28.6 million shares of Houston outstanding on Tuesday and the preliminary election results.

Due to the oversubscription, the elections will be subject to proration procedures laid out in the merger agreement. Houston stockholders who elected to receive their merger consideration in Forest shares will receive a combination of cash and stock. Shareholders who asked to receive all cash and all stockholders who failed to make a valid election will receive $60.02 per share.

The final amounts will be determined after the results of the election are fully calculated.

Houston shares dropped $1.42, or 2.3 percent, in premarket trading to $60.11, after closing at $61.53 on Tuesday. Forest Oil shares gained 1 cent to $42.05 in premarket trading, after closing at $42.04 on Tuesday.

Source : biz.yahoo.com

Oil and Gas Drilling: The Price is Right But The Industry's in Trouble

Strong global demand has consistently kept the price of oil above $50 per barrel. But the price of energy is hardly the only indicator for measuring the real health of oil and gas companies.
Project delays and outright cancellations are having an enormous impact on the viability of energy exploration projects, and are closely linked to a range of critical factors such as drilling day-rates, the cost of rig equipment, and the availability of drilling personnel.

Importantly, ever since the mid-1990s, oil companies have been reducing the percentage of their capital investments for exploration. Yet according to the International Energy Agency, by 2030 the world will be consuming more than 115 million barrels of oil a day, up from 85 million currently.

So why isn’t energy exploration receiving more attention?

A recent ChangeWave survey focused on these and other natural gas and oil exploration issues – including resource shortages, the cost of drilling services and equipment, and personnel. A total of 168 Alliance members who work in the natural gas and oil industry participated.

Tracking Industry Resources and Costs

We began with a look at industry resource shortages:

Which of the following gas & oil industry resources - if any - are currently exhibiting signs of a shortage (i.e. in short supply)? (Check All That Apply)

Industry resource shortages are still prevalent, with the greatest ones occurring in professional and drilling personnel.

We also asked industry members how current costs compare to those of 90 days ago.

Based on your own knowledge and what you are currently seeing in the industry, would you say the cost of labor, drilling services, drilling equipment and production services is more than it was 90 days ago, less than it was 90 days ago, or the same as 90 days ago?

Costs are continuing to rise for the majority of companies, with three-in-five (60%) reporting the cost of labor is higher than it was 90 days ago. Similarly, by a wide margin companies say both drilling services and drilling equipment cost more than they did 90 days ago.

Drilling For Answers

To further gauge the impact of prices on drilling we asked:

During 2007, what effect – if any – have prices for drilling services been having on your company's exploration drilling?

The cost of drilling services is still hurting, with 31% saying it’s decreasing their company's exploration drilling (4% significant decrease and 27% slight decrease).

But is this leading to more postponements or cancellations?

During 2007, has your company postponed or canceled any exploration drilling due to the cost of drilling services?

Clearly, the costs of drilling are causing more companies to delay or halt exploration drilling. Currently, one-in-five industry members (19%) say their company has postponed or canceled projects due to the price of drilling services – 5-pts more than previously.

Bottom Line

Many of these trends have not just materialized in the past year or two. They have developed over the last two decades.

Nonetheless, too many oil companies are slowing their exploration programs for new petroleum sources.

Ironically, the growing gap between exploration and production is creating a premium for small-to-mid size oil and gas companies with aggressive exploration programs. Investors who make the effort to drill down to these companies are likely to hit a gusher.

Lawmaker links gas prices to investments

WASHINGTON - While oil companies blame soaring gasoline prices on unexpected refinery shutdowns, Congress is questioning whether industry mergers and investment decisions have erased a supply cushion.

House Judiciary Committee's antitrust task force Wednesday opened the first of a number of hearings on oil industry concentration with its chairman noting that gasoline prices have soared well above $3 a gallon and asking, "How did we get into this mess?"

"Oil companies today are enjoying record profits, and while they could use those profits to invest in more production capacity, instead they use the money to buy back shares in the markets," complained Rep. John Conyers (news, bio, voting record) Jr., D-Mich., the panel's chairman.

John Felmy, chief economist at the American Petroleum Institute, rejected suggestions that companies want to curtail production to keep prices high and said refiners have been producing record amounts of gasoline.

"The higher prices reflect an imbalance between supply and demand" and high crude oil prices, said Felmy, whose group represents the major oil companies. He reiterated that refinery shutdowns, a decline in gasoline imports and higher demand are at the core of the upward price spiral. There is no evidence of price manipulation, he said.

Gasoline prices this week reached a nationwide record average of $3.10 a gallon, about 3 cents higher than after Hurricane Katrina devastated Gulf of Mexico oil supplies and shut down the Gulf's refineries, according to the Energy Department.

Rep. Bart Stupak (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich., who has crafted a bill that would make oil and gas price gouging a federal crime, questioned why gasoline prices soared even as crude oil prices dropped.

"In April ... crude oil was $7 a barrel cheaper than last year (but) gas prices were almost 50 cents a gallon higher," said Stupak. "Clearly there's more at play than simply the world crude oil market."

Industry experts and DOE's Energy Information Administration have cited an unusual number of refinery outages for the tight gasoline supply, resulting in higher prices. The agency this week said that as refineries get back on line, gasoline inventories are moving higher and that prices may begin to recede.

Consumer advocate Mark Cooper questioned at the House hearing whether the industry may be keeping supplies tight on purpose.

"By creating a situation of extremely tight supply, the oil companies gain control over price at the wholesale level," said Cooper, who monitors energy industries at the Consumer Federation of America. Despite huge increases in refinery profits, there have been no investments in refinery capacity, he argued.

Felmy said that while no new refinery has been built since the 1970s, the industry has expanded existing refinery capacity at a pace equivalent to one additional new refinery a year over the last decade. Still, he said the decision to build refineries is made on whether it's "in the interest of your shareholders given the uncertainties."

Conyers said one problem has been industry consolidation.

"In 1993 the five biggest refiners in the U.S. controlled 35 percent of the market. By 2004 they controlled 56 percent," he said, adding that in some regions a few refineries control the market.

"With this type of market structure, each individual refinery can limit capacity and drive up prices," said Conyers.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal told the task force that "lax and lackluster" federal enforcement of antitrust laws has led to an explosion of oil industry mergers, "many of them profoundly anticompetitive and anti-consumer."

Source : H. JOSEF HEBERT, Associated Press Writer

City Capital's Goshen Energy Pumping Gas on West Delta Well Number One -- First Full Flow Since Katrina

City Capital Corporation's (OTC BB:CCCN.OB - News) wholly owned subsidiary, Goshen Energy Resources, has initiated production with the first of four wells in the West Delta 25 gas producing offshore platform. Well Number One is currently averaging 400 thousand cubic feet (mcf) per day, running at approximately 20% capacity while all systems are being brought on line. The West Delta platform is located in the Gulf of Mexico, and has three additional existing wells which the company is also preparing to bring online.

Goshen president Harvey E. Lynch, Sr. explained, "Like many offshore platforms, West Delta was damaged by Katrina in 2005. The previous owners chose not to repair the older inefficient pump which had been in place since the well was first established, but chose instead to shut down the rig. City Capital's first decision was to replace the older compressor with a newer, more efficient one. This was a larger initial capital outlay, but it succeeded in making the entire operation significantly more cost-effective."

William Clay Kimbrell, P.E., C.P.G. of Kimbrell and Associates of Baton Rouge, certified the West Delta reserves at $38 million based on conservative pricing of only $5.00 per mcf for natural gas. Kimbrell is a registered professional engineer with Kimbrell and Associates, certified members of the American Institute of Professional Geologists and one of the most experienced Oil and Gas Engineering firms in Louisiana. The conservative estimate is well below recent spot market pricing for natural gas of $7.64/mcf. Upcoming winter season pricing is projected even higher, at over $9.00/mcf, or almost double the "rule of thumb" rate used in the evaluation. (source: www.eia.doe.gov)

"It's only been a little over 90 days since we closed on the Goshen property," added City Capital CEO Ephren W. Taylor II. "With approximately 8 Billion cubic feet of certified gas reserves, we figured spending around $250,000.00 to rework the well was a prudent decision. We feel the energy market will continue its general upward trend, as world market conditions are more and more affected by political instability in key production countries."

Goshen's West Delta property includes 3900 additional acres in which the company can perform additional drilling and exploration. The company has identified several key areas to enhance production and maximize profits, including the acquisition of a producing oil well with estimated crude oil reserves of 600,000 barrels, which the company closed on in April 2007. Goshen Energy Resources is engaged in the buying, selling & drilling of oil & gas properties in South Louisiana.

Source : www.citycapcorp.com

US-Based Partner Exercises its Option to Launch a US$8 M Pilot-Projet for Evaluation of Shale Gas Prospect on Junex Land

Junex Inc. (CDNX:JNX.V - News) is pleased to announce that its US based partner, a major independent gas producer, has decided to exercise its option to enter into a US $8 million pilot-project in order to evaluate the Utica shale section on 143,395 acres of permits wholly owned by Junex and located in the area of Becancour, between Quebec City and Montreal.


"This is an important milestone for Junex since it will be the first ever pilot-project to test the potential productivity of the Utica shale formation we have in the Province. Significant developments have occurred in the recent years in regards to the production of natural gas from the shale south of the border. We believe that this trend is moving to the North and Junex, with exploration permits covering more than 1 million acres of prospective lands in the Ste. Lawrence Lowland Basin, is extremely well positioned to take advantage of the enthusiasm generated by the shale gas projects in the North American gas industry. We are proud to rely on a solid partner with renowned expertise in the development of unconventional gas plays who has now indicated that it wishes to go ahead with this project. The land covered by this this deal represents approximately 15% of the total acreage we hold in the Ste. Lawrence Lowlands and we strongly believe that any success of a pilot-project in the Utica shale in Becancour would greatly increase the value of our other properties" commented Mr. Jean-Yves Lavoie, P. Eng. CEO of Junex.

In July 2006, Junex signed an agreement with one of the most important independent natural gas producers in the United States for the development of shale gas in the Becancour/Champlain region. The agreement specifically targeted the evaluation of the gas potential of the Utica shale section on four blocks of permits covering 143,395 acres located between Quebec-City and Montreal, which are entirely held by Junex. Pursuant to this agreement, Junex's partner analysed a total of 34.15 meters of Utica shale coring cut from the Becancour #8 well drilled by Junex. The cores were laboratory tested in order to better understand the physical and chemical properties of the sedimentary layer of the Utica shale and to evaluate their productivity potential. Based on the results of this analysis, its partner advised Junex today that it would go forward with the pilot-project. The first step of this project consists of performing a frac job on the Becancour #8 well. This frac job is scheduled for next July.

Source : biz.yahoo.com

Continental Resources Prices IPO at $15

Continental Resources Inc., an independent oil and gas exploration and production company in Oklahoma, was expected to begin trading Tuesday after pricing its initial public offering slightly below its expected range.

The company anticipated its shares to price between $16 and $18 per share, but late Monday the IPO of 29.5 million shares was priced at $15 per share.

The shares are expected to begin trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CLR.

The offering includes 20.7 million sold by Continental Chairman and Chief Executive Harold G. Hamm. At the IPO's closing, Hamm will own about 123 million shares of Continental's outstanding stock, representing a 73.2 percent stake in the company.

Continental plans to use net proceeds from the offering to repay outstanding debt under its revolving credit facility. The company will not receive any proceeds from shares sold by Hamm, who has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 4.4 million shares of common stock at the same price to cover over-allotments.

The offering is expected to close on Friday. JP Morgan Securities and Merrill Lynch are acting as joint book-running managers of the offering. Citi, UBS Securities, Deutsche Bank Securities and Raymond James & Associates are acting as co-managers.

In 2006, the company reported earnings of $253.1 million on revenue of $483.7 million.

Source : biz.yahoo.com

Derek Oil & Gas Corporation Reports Commencement of Steam Injection at LAK Ranch

Derek Oil & Gas Corporation (CDNX:DRK.V - News) is pleased to announce that upgrades and safety maintenance on the 27 Million BTU generator are complete and steam injection has commenced on Derek's LAK Ranch project in NE Wyoming.

On Thursday, May 10, with the steam generator servicing and upgrades complete, the steam injection process was initiated at LAK Ranch. Steam is currently being injected into six wells, the two pre-existing vertical injectors up dip from the pre-existing horizontal well and the four new producer wells to the south. Steam will be injected on a temporary basis (three weeks) into the four new producer wells to the south, at which time the temporary steam injection lines will be moved to allow temporary steam injection into the four new northerly producer wells. The purpose of injecting steam into the new producers is to heat up the formation adjacent to the well bores to facilitate viscosity reduction of the oil and ultimately increase initial production rates. It is anticipated that the four new southern producers will be on production this summer.

Well completion activities, including perforation of the four new northern producer wells, laying of production lines and installation of new facilities continue on the project. Perforation intervals for the four new injector wells will be determined this week by Derek's consultants and perforation of the new injector wells will follow.

The completed 12 vertical well program totaled a depth of approximately 13,540 feet. The program consists of a pattern of four injector and eight producer wells targeted to produce from the Newcastle sandstone formation. Well placements were selected based on targets identified using Derek's $1.1 million USD, high definition 3D seismic survey completed over 2880 acres (4 1/2 square miles) of the 8000 plus acre LAK Ranch property.

This 12 well program is being conducted jointly with a third party on a fifty-fifty cost basis, with the third party receiving 50% of the revenue until payback on their initial investment is met. Once payback is met, the third party's revenue interest (on the 12 well program production only) will revert to a 40% working interest. Derek has a 95% working interest in any current and future development and production on the property outside of this 12 well program area and therefore will receive its 95% from any additional production from the current horizontal producer well. Derek holds a 4.42% royalty on all produced oil.

Derek Oil & Gas Corporation is a Canadian based, publicly traded oil exploration, development and production company that utilizes enhanced oil recovery (EOR) techniques to develop new production from reservoirs in North America. Derek's current focus is on the further development and increasing production from their prime property located in NE Wyoming's prolific Powder River Basin.

Source : www.derekoilandgas.com

Stocks to Watch for Tuesday, May 15, 2007: PEP -- Petrostar Petroleum Announces Its Innovative Enhanced Oil Recovery Technology Program Update!

Market Pulse is pleased to introduce our featured stock, Petrostar Petroleum Corporation (CDNX:PEP.V - News), to the investment community! Petrostar is new to Market Pulse and is poised to become a significant player in the oil and gas exploration industry! Petrostar just had excellent news out in a press release before today's opening bell announcing that its Down Hole Tool (DHT) testing continues! Investors need to go to the company's website www.petrostarpetroleum.ca and review this exciting technology! The company said the DHT has the potential of economically revitalizing tens of thousands of proven North American medium and heavy oil wells that have been suspended due to insufficient reservoir pressure and drive! This could be great news for investors! Other notable stocks that should be closely watched due to existing fundamental and technical factors affecting each company include:

Apple Inc. (NasdaqGS:AAPL - News) : Market Outperform

On2 Technologies Inc. (AMEX:ONT - News) : Attractive

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM - News) : Market Outperform

Stock Pick Meanings

These stock picks are the investment opinions of MP's editor and reflect MP's belief regarding the potential price movement over the next one to four weeks of trading of each of the stocks presented. This analysis is done from a technical and fundamental perspective.

After Monday's Bell Market Commentary

On Monday, Light, sweet crude for June delivery rose 9 cents to settle at $62.46 a barrel. The dollar was mixed, it fell against the euro but gained against the yen. Gold fell closing at $670.10 an ounce. Treasury bonds fell ahead of the CPI, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond losing 4/32 at 98 16/32, yielding 4.689%. The markets closed mixed despite merger and acquisition activity as investors await the Labor Department's Consumer Price Index report and the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index. The Dow advanced 20.56, or 0.15 percent, to 13,346.78, after rising in the morning to a trading record of 13,383.76. The Nasdaq composite index lost 15.78, or 0.62 percent, to 2,546.44. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 2.70, or 0.18 percent, to 1,503.15. The Russell 2000 index fell 7.21, or 0.87 percent, to 822.33.

Source : Market-Pulse.com