34 the table below shows average crude oil and natural gas prices for west texas intermediate crude oil ( wti ) , united kingdom brent crude oil ( brent ) , and henry hub natural gas : replace_table_token_7_th average oil prices were approximately 7 % lower in 2014 than 2013. average natural gas prices were approximately 17 % higher in 2014 than 2013. these oil and natural gas price levels during 2014 were sufficient to support high levels of exploration and production activity , including the continued development of offshore projects . oil prices experienced a significant decline in the second half of 2014 , declining over 17 % from the average price during the first half and ending the year more than 50 % off their june peak . as of february 25 , 2015 , the west texas intermediate oil price has continued to decline another 7 % from the end of 2014. we expect the precipitous decline in oil prices over the last several months to have a significant negative impact on spending by our customers and therefore on our results of operations in 2015. in addition to the commodity price levels , the average active rig count data below , based on the weekly baker hughes incorporated rig count , reflect a broad measure of industry activity and resultant demand for our drilling , completion and production related products and services . replace_table_token_8_th generally , our sales are impacted by changes in rig activity and wells completed . the average u.s. rig count increased 6 % from 2013 , the international rig count increased 3 % from 2013 and the canadian rig count remained stable . the u.s. rig count peaked in september 2014 at 1,931 rigs . as a result of lower oil prices , the u.s. rig count experienced a 5 % decline in the fourth quarter . as of february 25 , 2015 , the u.s. rig count has continued to decline an additional 29 % from the end of 2014. many oil and gas companies have announced substantially reduced capital spending plans , which is expected to result in a significant decline in the rig count in 2015 . 35 in addition to the absolute number of active rigs , due to greater application of improved drilling and completion technologies , the current rig fleet is becoming more efficient , allowing more wells to be drilled per rig . the trends in the capabilities of the rig fleet are reflected in the table above through the increases in horizontal and directional drilling rigs as a portion of the total rig count . although well completions are expected to decrease in 2015 , we expect the decline to be less than the decrease in the overall rig count . acquisitions on may 1 , 2014 , we completed the acquisition of quality wireline & cable , inc. ( `` quality `` ) for consideration of $ 38.3 million . quality is a calgary , alberta based manufacturer of high-performance cased-hole electro-mechanical wireline cables and specialty cables for the oil and gas industry . quality is included in the drilling & subsea segment . on july 1 , 2013 , we completed two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture for aggregate consideration of approximately $ 230.0 million , each of which were financed with cash on hand and borrowings under our credit facility . the three transactions included the following : b+v oil tools , a manufacturer of pipe handling equipment used on offshore and onshore drilling rigs with locations in hamburg , germany and willis , texas . b+v oil tools is included in the drilling & subsea segment ; moffat , a newcastle , england based manufacturer of subsea pipeline inspection gauge launching and receiving systems , and subsea connectors . moffat is included in the drilling & subsea segment ; and the joint purchase of global tubing with an equal partner , with management retaining a small interest . global tubing is a dayton , texas based provider of coiled tubing strings and related services . our equity investment is reported in the production & infrastructure segment and is accounted for using the equity method of accounting . none of these transactions included potential future payments contingent on financial performance . we completed four acquisitions in the fourth quarter 2012 , syntech technology , incorporated , wireline solutions , llc , dynacon , inc. and merrimac manufacturing , inc. , all of which are included in the drilling & subsea segment . we paid aggregate cash consideration of approximately $ 139.7 million for these acquisitions in 2012. there are factors related to the businesses we have acquired that may result in lower net profit margins on a going-forward basis , primarily the federal income tax status of the legal entity and the level of depreciation and amortization charges arising out of the accounting for the purchase . in february 2015 , we completed the acquisition of j-mac tool , inc. ( “ j-mac ” ) for aggregate consideration of approximately $ 65.0 million . j-mac , located in fort worth , texas , manufactures hydraulic fracturing pumps , power ends , fluid ends and other pump accessories . the acquired business also provides repair and refurbishment services at its main location in fort worth and at other service center locations . j-mac will be included in the production & infrastructure segment . for additional information regarding our 2014 , 2013 , and 2012 acquisitions , please read note 3 of the notes to the consolidated financial statements in part ii , item 8 `` financial statements and supplementary data `` of this annual report on form 10-k. evaluation of operations we manage our operations through the two business segments described above . story_separator_special_tag the cost saving measures implemented in the second half of the year , coupled with increased shipments of the longer dated international orders received in the first half of the year , contributed to good margin recovery for drilling products in the second half of 2013. we also experienced a decline in our downhole products operating margin percentage as a higher proportion of shipments were destined for lower margin international projects . production & infrastructure segment — operating margin percentage declined 170 basis points to 14.8 % for the year ended december 31 , 2013 , from 16.5 % for the year ended december 31 , 2012. the decline in operating margin percentage is attributable to lower margins in well stimulation products on significantly lower activity levels and increased pricing competition . the decline was offset partially by the inclusion of $ 7.3 million of equity in earnings of the global tubing llc joint venture in the second half of 2013. corporate — selling , general and administrative expenses for corporate increased $ 8.8 million , or 42.7 % , for the year ended december 31 , 2013 compared to the year ended december 31 , 2012 due to higher personnel costs and various professional fees primarily associated with being a publicly traded company and complying with applicable regulations . corporate costs included , among other items , payroll related costs for general management and management of finance and administration , legal , human resources and information technology ; professional fees for external legal , accounting and related services ; and marketing costs . corporate costs also included $ 0.4 million in severance charges in 2013 . 42 other items not included in segment operating income several items are not included in segment operating income , but are included in total operating income . these items include : transaction expenses , gains/losses from the sale of assets , contingent consideration and impairment of intangible assets . transaction expenses relate to legal and other advisory costs incurred in acquiring businesses and are not considered to be part of segment operating income . including $ 0.8 million reported as part of equity in earnings of global tubing llc , transaction costs were $ 3.5 million for the year ended december 31 , 2013 , for two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture all closed effective july 1 , 2013 , and $ 1.8 million for the year ended december 31 , 2012. refer to note 3 , acquisitions , for further information . the contingent consideration credit recorded during the year ended december 31 , 2012 was related to two acquisitions in 2011 in which part of the purchase price was payable in cash and or shares of the our common stock based on the earnings of the acquired entities through the end of 2012. the net change in the accrual was recorded as part of operating income , and the reduction in this obligation resulted in an increase to operating income of $ 4.6 million during the year ended december 31 , 2012. during the year ended december 31 , 2012 , an impairment loss of $ 1.2 million was recorded on certain intangible assets resulting from a lack of orders related to a specific service line . other income and expense other income and expense includes interest expense , foreign exchange gains and losses and deferred loan costs written off . we incurred $ 18.4 million of interest expense during the year ended december 31 , 2013 , an increase of $ 2.0 million from the year ended december 31 , 2012. the increase in interest expense was partially attributable to an increase in debt incurred to finance the two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture completed in the third quarter 2013 , and a higher interest rate under our senior notes issued in the fourth quarter 2013 compared to the variable interest rate under our credit facility . the term loan under our credit facility was paid off from the net proceeds on our senior notes . accordingly , unamortized debt issue costs of $ 2.1 million associated with the term loan were charged to expense during 2013. taxes tax expense includes current income taxes expected to be due based on taxable income to be reported during the periods in the various jurisdictions in which we conduct business , and deferred income taxes based on changes in the tax effect of temporary differences between the bases of assets and liabilities for financial reporting and tax purposes at the beginning and end of the respective periods . the effective tax rate , calculated by dividing total tax expense by income before income taxes , was 30.4 % and 32.0 % for the years ended december 31 , 2013 and 2012 , respectively . the effective tax rate for the year ended december 31 , 2013 is lower than the comparable period in 2012 primarily due to a higher proportion of our earnings being generated outside the united states in jurisdictions subject to lower tax rates and due to a reduction in the tax provision from the finalization of certain prior year tax returns . liquidity and capital resources sources and uses of liquidity our internal sources of liquidity are cash on hand and cash flows from operations , while our primary external sources have included our credit facility described below , trade credit , the issuance of our senior notes described below and sales of our common stock . our primary uses of capital have been for acquisitions , ongoing maintenance and growth capital expenditures , inventories and sales on credit to our customers . we continually monitor potential capital sources , including equity and debt financing , to meet our investment and target liquidity requirements . our future success and growth will be highly dependent on our ability to continue to access outside sources of capital . at december 31 , 2014 , we had

net cash provided by operating activities was $ 211.4 million and $ 137.9 million for the years ended december 31 , 2013 and 2012 , respectively . cash provided by operations increased as a result of reduced investments in working capital as compared to the prior year , primarily inventory , which added $ 33.1 million as compared to the use of cash of $ 100.3 million in the prior year . offsetting the positive impacts of the reduced investments in working capital was a 44 decrease in net income to $ 129.6 million for the year ended december 31 , 2013 , from $ 151.5 million for the year ended december 31 , 2012 . our operating cash flows are sensitive to a number of variables , the most significant of which is the level of drilling and production activity for oil and natural gas reserves . these activity levels are in turn impacted by the volatility of oil and natural gas prices , regional and worldwide economic activity and its effect on demand for hydrocarbons , weather , infrastructure capacity to reach markets and other variable factors . these factors are beyond our control and are difficult to predict . cash flows used in investing activities net cash used in investing activities was $ 70.7 million and $ 289.0 million for the year ended december 31 , 2014 and 2013 , respectively , a $ 218.3 million decrease . the decrease was primarily due to consideration of $ 38.3 million paid for an acquisition during the year ended december 31 , 2014 compared to the consideration of $ 229.7 million paid for two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture closed during the year ended december 31 , 2013 . additionally , a lower investment in property and equipment of $ 53.8 million was made during the year ended december 31 , 2014 compared an investment of $ 60.3 million during the year ended december 31 , 2013 .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```net cash provided by operating activities was $ 211.4 million and $ 137.9 million for the years ended december 31 , 2013 and 2012 , respectively . cash provided by operations increased as a result of reduced investments in working capital as compared to the prior year , primarily inventory , which added $ 33.1 million as compared to the use of cash of $ 100.3 million in the prior year . offsetting the positive impacts of the reduced investments in working capital was a 44 decrease in net income to $ 129.6 million for the year ended december 31 , 2013 , from $ 151.5 million for the year ended december 31 , 2012 . our operating cash flows are sensitive to a number of variables , the most significant of which is the level of drilling and production activity for oil and natural gas reserves . these activity levels are in turn impacted by the volatility of oil and natural gas prices , regional and worldwide economic activity and its effect on demand for hydrocarbons , weather , infrastructure capacity to reach markets and other variable factors . these factors are beyond our control and are difficult to predict . cash flows used in investing activities net cash used in investing activities was $ 70.7 million and $ 289.0 million for the year ended december 31 , 2014 and 2013 , respectively , a $ 218.3 million decrease . the decrease was primarily due to consideration of $ 38.3 million paid for an acquisition during the year ended december 31 , 2014 compared to the consideration of $ 229.7 million paid for two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture closed during the year ended december 31 , 2013 . additionally , a lower investment in property and equipment of $ 53.8 million was made during the year ended december 31 , 2014 compared an investment of $ 60.3 million during the year ended december 31 , 2013 .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : 34 the table below shows average crude oil and natural gas prices for west texas intermediate crude oil ( wti ) , united kingdom brent crude oil ( brent ) , and henry hub natural gas : replace_table_token_7_th average oil prices were approximately 7 % lower in 2014 than 2013. average natural gas prices were approximately 17 % higher in 2014 than 2013. these oil and natural gas price levels during 2014 were sufficient to support high levels of exploration and production activity , including the continued development of offshore projects . oil prices experienced a significant decline in the second half of 2014 , declining over 17 % from the average price during the first half and ending the year more than 50 % off their june peak . as of february 25 , 2015 , the west texas intermediate oil price has continued to decline another 7 % from the end of 2014. we expect the precipitous decline in oil prices over the last several months to have a significant negative impact on spending by our customers and therefore on our results of operations in 2015. in addition to the commodity price levels , the average active rig count data below , based on the weekly baker hughes incorporated rig count , reflect a broad measure of industry activity and resultant demand for our drilling , completion and production related products and services . replace_table_token_8_th generally , our sales are impacted by changes in rig activity and wells completed . the average u.s. rig count increased 6 % from 2013 , the international rig count increased 3 % from 2013 and the canadian rig count remained stable . the u.s. rig count peaked in september 2014 at 1,931 rigs . as a result of lower oil prices , the u.s. rig count experienced a 5 % decline in the fourth quarter . as of february 25 , 2015 , the u.s. rig count has continued to decline an additional 29 % from the end of 2014. many oil and gas companies have announced substantially reduced capital spending plans , which is expected to result in a significant decline in the rig count in 2015 . 35 in addition to the absolute number of active rigs , due to greater application of improved drilling and completion technologies , the current rig fleet is becoming more efficient , allowing more wells to be drilled per rig . the trends in the capabilities of the rig fleet are reflected in the table above through the increases in horizontal and directional drilling rigs as a portion of the total rig count . although well completions are expected to decrease in 2015 , we expect the decline to be less than the decrease in the overall rig count . acquisitions on may 1 , 2014 , we completed the acquisition of quality wireline & cable , inc. ( `` quality `` ) for consideration of $ 38.3 million . quality is a calgary , alberta based manufacturer of high-performance cased-hole electro-mechanical wireline cables and specialty cables for the oil and gas industry . quality is included in the drilling & subsea segment . on july 1 , 2013 , we completed two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture for aggregate consideration of approximately $ 230.0 million , each of which were financed with cash on hand and borrowings under our credit facility . the three transactions included the following : b+v oil tools , a manufacturer of pipe handling equipment used on offshore and onshore drilling rigs with locations in hamburg , germany and willis , texas . b+v oil tools is included in the drilling & subsea segment ; moffat , a newcastle , england based manufacturer of subsea pipeline inspection gauge launching and receiving systems , and subsea connectors . moffat is included in the drilling & subsea segment ; and the joint purchase of global tubing with an equal partner , with management retaining a small interest . global tubing is a dayton , texas based provider of coiled tubing strings and related services . our equity investment is reported in the production & infrastructure segment and is accounted for using the equity method of accounting . none of these transactions included potential future payments contingent on financial performance . we completed four acquisitions in the fourth quarter 2012 , syntech technology , incorporated , wireline solutions , llc , dynacon , inc. and merrimac manufacturing , inc. , all of which are included in the drilling & subsea segment . we paid aggregate cash consideration of approximately $ 139.7 million for these acquisitions in 2012. there are factors related to the businesses we have acquired that may result in lower net profit margins on a going-forward basis , primarily the federal income tax status of the legal entity and the level of depreciation and amortization charges arising out of the accounting for the purchase . in february 2015 , we completed the acquisition of j-mac tool , inc. ( “ j-mac ” ) for aggregate consideration of approximately $ 65.0 million . j-mac , located in fort worth , texas , manufactures hydraulic fracturing pumps , power ends , fluid ends and other pump accessories . the acquired business also provides repair and refurbishment services at its main location in fort worth and at other service center locations . j-mac will be included in the production & infrastructure segment . for additional information regarding our 2014 , 2013 , and 2012 acquisitions , please read note 3 of the notes to the consolidated financial statements in part ii , item 8 `` financial statements and supplementary data `` of this annual report on form 10-k. evaluation of operations we manage our operations through the two business segments described above . story_separator_special_tag the cost saving measures implemented in the second half of the year , coupled with increased shipments of the longer dated international orders received in the first half of the year , contributed to good margin recovery for drilling products in the second half of 2013. we also experienced a decline in our downhole products operating margin percentage as a higher proportion of shipments were destined for lower margin international projects . production & infrastructure segment — operating margin percentage declined 170 basis points to 14.8 % for the year ended december 31 , 2013 , from 16.5 % for the year ended december 31 , 2012. the decline in operating margin percentage is attributable to lower margins in well stimulation products on significantly lower activity levels and increased pricing competition . the decline was offset partially by the inclusion of $ 7.3 million of equity in earnings of the global tubing llc joint venture in the second half of 2013. corporate — selling , general and administrative expenses for corporate increased $ 8.8 million , or 42.7 % , for the year ended december 31 , 2013 compared to the year ended december 31 , 2012 due to higher personnel costs and various professional fees primarily associated with being a publicly traded company and complying with applicable regulations . corporate costs included , among other items , payroll related costs for general management and management of finance and administration , legal , human resources and information technology ; professional fees for external legal , accounting and related services ; and marketing costs . corporate costs also included $ 0.4 million in severance charges in 2013 . 42 other items not included in segment operating income several items are not included in segment operating income , but are included in total operating income . these items include : transaction expenses , gains/losses from the sale of assets , contingent consideration and impairment of intangible assets . transaction expenses relate to legal and other advisory costs incurred in acquiring businesses and are not considered to be part of segment operating income . including $ 0.8 million reported as part of equity in earnings of global tubing llc , transaction costs were $ 3.5 million for the year ended december 31 , 2013 , for two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture all closed effective july 1 , 2013 , and $ 1.8 million for the year ended december 31 , 2012. refer to note 3 , acquisitions , for further information . the contingent consideration credit recorded during the year ended december 31 , 2012 was related to two acquisitions in 2011 in which part of the purchase price was payable in cash and or shares of the our common stock based on the earnings of the acquired entities through the end of 2012. the net change in the accrual was recorded as part of operating income , and the reduction in this obligation resulted in an increase to operating income of $ 4.6 million during the year ended december 31 , 2012. during the year ended december 31 , 2012 , an impairment loss of $ 1.2 million was recorded on certain intangible assets resulting from a lack of orders related to a specific service line . other income and expense other income and expense includes interest expense , foreign exchange gains and losses and deferred loan costs written off . we incurred $ 18.4 million of interest expense during the year ended december 31 , 2013 , an increase of $ 2.0 million from the year ended december 31 , 2012. the increase in interest expense was partially attributable to an increase in debt incurred to finance the two acquisitions and an investment in a joint venture completed in the third quarter 2013 , and a higher interest rate under our senior notes issued in the fourth quarter 2013 compared to the variable interest rate under our credit facility . the term loan under our credit facility was paid off from the net proceeds on our senior notes . accordingly , unamortized debt issue costs of $ 2.1 million associated with the term loan were charged to expense during 2013. taxes tax expense includes current income taxes expected to be due based on taxable income to be reported during the periods in the various jurisdictions in which we conduct business , and deferred income taxes based on changes in the tax effect of temporary differences between the bases of assets and liabilities for financial reporting and tax purposes at the beginning and end of the respective periods . the effective tax rate , calculated by dividing total tax expense by income before income taxes , was 30.4 % and 32.0 % for the years ended december 31 , 2013 and 2012 , respectively . the effective tax rate for the year ended december 31 , 2013 is lower than the comparable period in 2012 primarily due to a higher proportion of our earnings being generated outside the united states in jurisdictions subject to lower tax rates and due to a reduction in the tax provision from the finalization of certain prior year tax returns . liquidity and capital resources sources and uses of liquidity our internal sources of liquidity are cash on hand and cash flows from operations , while our primary external sources have included our credit facility described below , trade credit , the issuance of our senior notes described below and sales of our common stock . our primary uses of capital have been for acquisitions , ongoing maintenance and growth capital expenditures , inventories and sales on credit to our customers . we continually monitor potential capital sources , including equity and debt financing , to meet our investment and target liquidity requirements . our future success and growth will be highly dependent on our ability to continue to access outside sources of capital . at december 31 , 2014 , we had

