Oil Plunges; Stocks Gain

The markets pulled out modest gains today on plunging oil prices, despite housing price indices that showed the biggest drop in 20 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow ended up 68.72 at 12,548.35, the Nasdaq up 36.57 at 2,481.24, and the S&P 500 up 9.42 at 1,385.35.

The oil market was due for a downturn, one trader said. The market "hits new contract highs, then consolidates for a week or so to build up a head of steam for another up move," he explained, adding that Thursday's release of inventory data could provide the impetus for prices to move up once again. (More stock market stories.)