December heating oil garnered an early morning lift as the outside market tone took a more favorable turn. Some traders suggested that hopes for a resolution to the European debt crisis later this week was a factor supporting risk taking attitudes this morning. The Commitments of Traders Futures and Options report as of October 18th showed non-commercial traders were net long 21,633 contracts, an increase of 13,006. Non-commercial and nonreportable traders combined held a net long position of 35,232 contracts, an increase of 17,451. The active spec buying interest was also highlighted by an active buying from money mangers, both seen as positive short term forces.

Oilwebs.com, a leading provider of websites and applications for the oil heat industry, is pleased to announce the launch of http://www.bioheatdealers.com. This new site will allow homeowners and businesses to find sources of cleaner burning Bio-Heat blends.

Oilwebs has been working with suppliers to help get the word out about this alternative fuel. Made in the USA with renewable materials, Bio-Heat heating oil is blended with biodegradable, organic materials such as soybean oil and is non-toxic.

Referenced Stocks: GDX, GLD, SLV, UNG, USO

Commodities finished trading down as crude oil futures ended lower while gold was pressured by a stronger dollar.

Light, sweet crude oil for November delivery finished down 0.9% to $85.30 a barrel. In other energy futures, heating oil was up 0.6% to $2.99 a gallon while natural gas was up 1.56% to $3.64 per million British thermal units.

In energy ETFs, the United States Oil Fund ( USO ) is down 1.17% to $32.92. The United States Natural Gas ETF ( UNG ) is up 0.29% to $8.79.

Bioheat is a new concept in energy efficiency and prevention of environmental degradation. Bioheat is a type of heating oil that contains blends of soya bean oil, fats and vegetable oils in a combination that is termed “biodiesel”. Unlike fossil fuels, burning biodiesel is a cleaner, renewable source of fuel. Biofuels are environmentally friendly as the oil burns more cleanly, does not soil the heat exchangers to the same extent as fossil fuels and keeps the equipment free from sludge and other debris. Biofuel is renewable and acts as a good solvent that allows the fuel to burn more cleanly and not impart residues to equipment as readily as fossil fuels. The usage of biodiesel in your boiler or furnace will ensure the longer life of the equipment and help in reducing maintenance costs. The blends of oil and fat that constitute the biofuel are all natural, organic and recyclable and available in the United States. Moreover you can use your existing equipment in order to convert to biofuel.

November heating oil prices came under modest pressure during the early morning hours, seemingly in response to outside market weakness and lower crude oil prices. Some traders also indicated that fresh European debt concerns and weakness across major commodity markets may have also weighed on the heating oil market. There were also some analysts that pointed to the nearly 8.5% rally from last week’s low as a force that might have pushed the market into overbought territory.

FS Energy, the energy management subsidiary of FirstService Corporation, has begun work on an oil-to-gas conversion at The Strand, a 42-story condominium tower on West 43rd Street. Once completed, The Strand will have replaced No. 6 heating oil with natural gas in advance of the mandatory phase out by 2015. The Strand is managed by FirstService’s New York City affiliate Cooper Square Realty, which manages more than 450 condominiums and cooperatives – 100 of which are currently burning No. 6 oil.

Content provider Heating Oil Shopper (http://www.heatingoilshopper.com) launched a collection of heating oil and energy related resources today including this graphic and accompanying guide, which revealed that while the US consumes over twice the oil of the next biggest consuming country, they create nearly half as much crude oil as they consume.