Stocks drop on concerns about housing, oil drilling

Stocks were down for a second day Tuesday after home sales dropped unexpectedly and the White House vowed to fight a court ruling against an offshore drilling moratorium.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 149 points, its biggest drop in about two weeks. Treasury prices climbed after demand for safe investments rose.

The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes fell 2.2 percent in May. Home builder Toll Brothers Inc. slid 3.2 percent, while Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. fell 3.5 percent.

Oil stocks fell after the administration said it would appeal a judge's decision to overturn a six-month ban on deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Baker Hughes Inc., a supplier of oil drilling parts and services, fell 4.4 percent, while oil-services company Halliburton Inc. fell 3.9 percent.

Technology shares fell less than the broader market after Apple Inc. said it sold 3 million iPads in the first 80 days the tablet computers were on sale in the United States. The stock rose 1.4 percent and helped limit the losses in the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index.

The Dow fell 148.89, or 1.4 percent, to 10,293.52, its biggest point loss since June 4. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 17.89, or 1.6 percent, to 1,095.31, while the Nasdaq fell 27.29, or 1.2 percent, to 2,261.80. - AP