Energy stocks knocked down by tumbling crude oil, natural gas prices
The energy sector was taking a broad beating, enough to pace all of the S&P 500's sectors in declines, amid a sharp drop in crude oil and natural gas prices and a selloff in the broader stock market. The SPDR Energy Select Sector ETF (XLE) slid 4.6%, with all 26 components losing ground. Among the more active components, shares of oil and gas producers Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) dropped 3.7%, Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) lost 5.6%, Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY) shed 4.0% and Chevron Corp. (CVX) declined 4.4%, while the stocks of oil services companies Halliburton Co. (HAL) tumbled 9.9% and Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) sank 8.5%. Crude oil futures fell 4.8% to below $40 a barrel, amid expectations that Libyan crude will soon return to the market (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-tumble-on-expectations-for-return-of-libyan-crude-production-global-stock-market-selloff-2020-09-21), and natural gas futures plunged 11.3%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 dropped 2.4%, with all 11 sector tracking ETFs losing ground.
-Tomi Kilgore; 415-439-6400; AskNewswires@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 21, 2020 14:20 ET (18:20 GMT)
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