03:37 PM EDT, 07/17/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks rose late Wednesday afternoon with the NYSE Energy Sector Index adding 0.6% and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) up 1%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index fell 0.3%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index gained 1.6%.

US crude oil stocks, including those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell 4.2 million barrels in the week ended Friday following a decrease of 3 million in the previous week. Excluding inventories in the SPR, commercial crude oil stocks fell 4.9 million after a drop of 3.4 million in the previous week, a larger decline than the decrease of 1.1 million expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 2.7% to $82.91 a barrel, while global benchmark Brent was advanced 1.6% to $85.09 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures tumbled 6.9% to $2.04 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, ConocoPhillips ( COP ) is likely to show "continued strong operational performance across the asset base" in Q2 results, UBS Securities said. ConocoPhillips ( COP ) shares added 1.1%.