09:01 AM EDT, 06/13/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were declining pre-bell Thursday with the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) down 0.3% recently.

The United States Oil Fund (USO) was 0.2% lower and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was down 2.6%.

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 0.4% at $78.17 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil lost 0.3% to $82.37 per barrel, and natural gas futures were down 1.5% at $3.00 per 1 million British Thermal Units.

NextDecade ( NEXT ) was 6% higher after the company and Aramco said their subsidiaries have agreed to a non-binding 20-year liquefied natural gas sale and purchase agreement.