Stocks drop at open after housing prices fall

NEW YORK (AP) – Stocks are edging lower at the opening of trading, after a report showed housing prices fell in most major U.S. cities.

The S&P/Case-Shiller index showed home prices fell in 19 of the 20 cities tracked and 0.22 percent overall in January. Washington was the only city in which prices rose. Prices have fallen 3 percent in the past year.

The Conference Board reports later today on consumer confidence in March. Worries about gas prices are expected to pull its confidence index down from a three-year high as the recent surge in fuel prices begins to cut into income.

The Dow Jones industrial average is down 3 to 12,194. The S&P 500 is down 2, or 0.2 percent, to 1,307. The Nasdaq is down 5, or 0.2 percent, to 2,724.