Happy Weekend...and we say goodbye to the great Harvey Korman. Here he is with Tim Conway trying to keep a straight face and failing!

Brother talk about watching paint dry...this is one of the most uneventful days in a long time. Maybe its the nice weather in NYC...not sure but trading today is by appointment only.

Penn Virginia (PVG) is up 1 and some change at 33 and is today's biggest winner as it follows up Penn Virginia (PVA) which is up 9 dollars on horizontal drilling success. Plains All American (PAA) up 1 and change as well on the increase guidance and upgrade. Alliance Resource (ARLP) and Natural Resource (NRP) are up 1 each. If its coal..its up. DCP Midstream (DPM) E V Partners (EVEP) Williams (WPZ) Holly Partners (HEP) and Crosstex (XTEX) all showing fractional gains.

Exterran Partners (EXLP) Inergy Holdings (NRGP) and Hiland Holdings (HPGP) down fractions to a point on non existent volume so that could change by days end. The mlp index is up just under 1 point as of this posting.

Crude was up 1 then down 1..up 1 and change again to the days highs...now coming off that. Volitlilty has been the word here with these wild swings. Bulls and bears...someone will get exhausted very soon.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN BOOSTS GUIDANCE

After the close yesterday Plains All American (PAA) boosted guidance for the year and they raised their distribution guidance for the year. Morgan Keegan notices and raised PAA to outperform from market perform. Sometimes this stuff moves mlps and sometimes it doesn't But i will be optimistic.

Crude overnight briefly traded below 125 before rallying and is now up 1 and change and near 128. But this market has been nuts and who knows where it will be later today. Plus this may not necessarily be a positive for energy stocks which we have noticed lately days when crude is up and big energy is down and versa visa...i mean visa versa. My guess is a bounce for energy stocks at the open and then we'll see if sellers take over. And mlps yesterday on the whole were higher as the index closed up over 1 point while the rest of energy was down 2 to 3% in some cases.

Its Friday kids and the last day of the month and we are near 200 day moving averages on many charts so this could be one of those days. No other corporate developements and no other upgrades or downgrades. Standing by for the open.

Crude oil is imploding down $4.68 as of this posting and the MLP index is up 1.22 while big energy is down today and the overall market is up. The dollar rally is very strong and i think this is boosting mlps with their high yields rather than seeing weakness from the energy patch. This as intererst rates are rising. The 10 year is at 4.11 up 10 basis points.

Most mlps are higher today with the few losers down small fractions. Nustar (NS) is down 47 cents as the biggest major loser. Winners include Kinder Morgan (KMP) Calumet (CLMT) Plains All American (PAA) Holly (HEP) among others showing some nice fractional gains. No outstanding big winners but the tape is moving in the right direction.

Finally seeing oil crack along with everything else commodity driven.

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MORE OIL NOISE
BUT I AIN'T PREDICTING!

After my completely wrong diagnosis of the daily trade yesterday i'm just going to let the market play itself out with regards to oil . We went from being down nearly 3 dollars at this point yesterday to up 2 and change at the high. 130 is trying to hold this morning with crude down nearly 1 dollar and inventory numbers due out later.

Anyone notice yesterday that the 10 year pushed above 4%? Well i haven't put this up in awhile but what about an MLP index vs 10 year rate chart.



Notice that mlps fell as rates fell to that 262 intraday low which pretty much was in lockstep with the 10 year rate low near 3.30 and we've moved to 291 as rates have risen 70 basis points. Since the rate fall is a flight from risk, mlps suffered. The rate rise is a return to risk and MLPs have moved higher from those gut wrenching lows. But from here if the 10 year rise is due to increased inflation risk what does that mean for MLPS? I know you posters in a bad mood; i already know what you are going to say. But it is a relationship we may need to be watching closely again. Or perhaps we should have been watching it all along.

The energy complex is down as of this posting except for nat gas which is up a few ticks. The dollar is rallying nicely this morning. Stock futures are a little lower but nothing tragic as GDP revisions are out later this morning. No headlines this morning on the corporate front and so far nothing on the upgrade downgrade list. But those things could change as the morning is young.

Noticed lots of end of month action yesterday with shares getting moved around on a few mlps. I would expect more distortions in both directions today as players shift positions around.

I could not have been more wrong about today. Markets are very humbling!

MLP index closed flat.

This is turning into one of the most boring trading days in a long time. Nothing is moving much in either direction. Snooozzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

BTW for those of you interested the DUG's follow the Dow Jones Total US Market Oil and Gas (^DJUSEN) just about tick for tick...what ever pct the index is down...the DUG will be up about double.

I really thought we were in for a big down day on anything energy but so far...i'm wrong. The mlp index is down just a little bit less than 1 point. Crude which was down nearly 3 this morning is up about 1 right now. Picking tops and timing them to make money is not as easy as it sounds.

Martin Midstream (MMLP) is down 1 and some change as the biggest loser but i don't see any headlines here. Both Nustars (NS, NSH) are barely up after issuing guidance for the quarter.

Lunchtime!

Well so far...how wrong was i on the selloff...crude is actually rallying from 126 low and is now almost flat. But will it hold? Overall market hanging on to a small gain but financials are selling off. MLPS are slightly lower. Nustar (NS,NSH) put out guidance for the quarter and the market likes it enough to add fractions.

Oil is even as i type. Big energy has turned higher...at least for now.

No news and no upgrades or downgrades so far this morning. Enterprise GP continues to make market purchases of Energy Transfer Equity (ETE) as they have been on a regular basis over the last few weeks.

Crude down just under 2 bucks and stock futures up 4 points on the S&P. I may be wrong but i am looking for weakness to take over as the day wears on especially in energy...and especially in big energy. Interesting day ahead.

IT COULD GET UGLY TODAY

OIL SELLING OFF (FINALLY)

I got up early this morning just in time to see oil plunge 2 dollars and that is after yesterday's nearly 4 dollar loss. Now if this selling gets really serious later today and it spreads to the other markets it could make for a very messy day for anything energy....and for that matter everything else if the hedge funds really have to start selling. Now maybe i'm getting a little dramatic here but keep an eye on things today. And MLPS are likely to move lower here but this could be a buying opportunity since we know that price for most mlps is not a huge issue.

The MLP index still in this basing phase but notice the XOI index of big oil has room to correct here into those movinig averages which are 3 percent below yesterday's close for the 34 day and 5% below for the 55 day moving average. And the xoi appears to have no problem going below that from time to time.
And the USO has the average down at 97.50 which would equate crude down around 115.

Stock futures are flat right now as of this post and being that its so early, i wll post again before the open.

OIL down...Big energy stocks down...MLPS down. All makes sense. The overall market is doing nothing much as it pulls back and forth in here in a tight range.

Atlas Energy (ATN) is down 1.65 as the biggest loser. Kinder Morgan (KMP)is down 1. Calumet (CLMT) and Plains All American (PAA) are down major fractions. Nustar (NS) and Atlas Pipeline (APL) are down and Nustar is back under 50.

Holly Partners (HEP) is up nearly 1 as the second biggest winner but there are not many others on that last. DCP Midstream (DPM) is up 44 cents. Exterran Partners (EXLP) is up over 2 dollars as the biggest standout.

CRUDE, NAT GAS, HEATING OIL

JUST KEEP ON GOING!

Tuesday's after a 3 day weekend always feel like its slow to get going. And here in MLP land we are always even slower than everyone else. Outside of some corporate changes being announced at Crosstex Energy (XTEX,XTXI) we don't see too much happening. The energy markets however are moving higher. Crude is up around 1 dollar, nat gas has a 12 handle this morning and heating oil is just about at a 4 handle. Amazing that every hint at a selloff brings in more buyers. But this insanity has to end somewhere.

We need to recognize a few things going on right now that might have impact. Keep an eye on the big energy stocks. They sold off Friday with everything else and in fact were among the overall markets biggest losers. One day does not a trend make but as i have pointed out many times we will be dragged along. The overall market sold off last week on 4 of the 5 days and we have given back about 1/2 the rally in the dow to 13,100. The good news is that the MLP index is holding up better in here relative to the action we saw in the first 3 months of the year. Interest rates are rising with the ten year at 3.83 which normally would be a negative but i wonder whether we're at one of those points where that part of the equation has some head room before we have to worry thanks to very wide yield spreads over the 10 year. Also watch Lehman and whether trouble is brewing there since they hold large stakes in some mlps and we know what happened last March when they raided Lehman after the Bear Sterns collapse. I'm not suggesting a calamity in here but we are at tipping points on many issues and if the bear market exerts itself and the overall market falls to new lows guess who will get pulled along for the ride. So let us be vigilant for developments.

Nothing else going on this morning and no upgrades or downgrades.

Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday weekend. I'm working tonight and bored. For those of you interested in how "DUG" works here is a good place to explain it all. DUG is the ultrashort oil and gas and it follows the dow jones energy index. It does not necessarily move with crude oil but with stocks that make up the index. Thats why Friday the DUG's were up 1 while crude was also up 1 and change. More at that link for those interested.

Sell off going into the weekend in all equities. Dow is down 115 pts. Big Energy (XOI )is down 22 points or 1.5%. Big Energy Gas (XNG) is down over 2%. And the MLP index is down 2 points or .67% ish. But the DUG's are up nicely...nearly 1 point now at 28.40 and they effectively hedge your MLPS if the decline gets a little rough.

No news on Exterran Partners (EXLP) but for some reason its up nearly 2 dollars today. Maybe they said something that somebody liked yesterday at the MLP conference. Constellation Energy Partners (CEP) is up 44 cents as another among the few winners today.

Alliance Resource Partners (ARLP), Natural Resource (NRP) Atlas Energy Resource (ATN) and Calumet (CLMT) all down 1 or more on the long losers list today.

Crude still up 1 and change right now and off the highs but the energy equities are selling off hard so they may be signaling (finally) a short term top but i hesitate given the bullishness in crude that shows up on every small pullback.

OIL REBOUNDING

We had 1 whole down day yesterday in crude as we gave back 1/2 of the gain from the day before. This morning we have gained back 1/2 of yesterday's loss. So at the end of the day we are down 3 bucks from yesterday's intra day high of 135 and some change. Who knows if the top is in but stock futures are lower this morning. This might have a bigger impact on the DUG if oil stocks drop if the overall market takes gas. We'll see. No headlines this morning on MLPS and so far no upgrades or downgrades in the list so far.

I couldn't figure out why the sell off yesterday in MLPS to the tune of 3 plus points on the index. It hit me last night however as i was driving to the bowling alley (don't ask). Yesterday was the MLP conference in NYC and i think it was a buy the rumour sell the news move. No big announcements so there were longs in there who were expecting something and they sold. That simple. I don't think it was the crude sell off yesterday or the selling in energy stocks that was the primary mover here.

Friday before Memorial Day Weekend so i hope everyone has some plans. I have a soccer tournament and work. Weather too cool here for the beach or pool so i think i will head to Belmont and try to earn a living there. Monday is the MET MILE.

at the lows of the day now on the MLP index down over 3 points. Nustar (NS) down nearly 2 is the biggest loser of the day. Winner list is small and shrinking. Some of the recent gainers seeing the most selling today.

Oil down 2.57. Its a start.

Oil now down 2 dollars! And at the lows of the day!!!!


Glory!

It looked like oil was about to crack and while its down 1.34 its off yesterday's 5 dollar gain so i'm not impressed. But the last hour often times brings out sellers so we will watch. MLPS are down 2 points on the index but thats because all the big boys in it are down today major fractions like Kinder Morgan (KMP) Nustar (NS) which is down 1 and change. Oneok (OKS)and Atlas Pipeline (APL) are also fractional losers. Atlas Energy Resource (ATN) is down 1 and change.

Winners include Calumet (CLMT) DCP Midstream (DPM) and Inergy Holdings (NRGP) among other showing fractional gains.

Hey the DUG is up a few cents and off its highs.