01:24 PM EDT, 08/19/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were higher Monday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) each rising 1%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index increased 0.7%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index was up 0.4%.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil was dropping 2.8% to $74.51 a barrel while the global benchmark Brent crude contract was falling 2.4% to $77.80 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures jumped 5% to $2.23 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Occidental (OXY) shares rose 0.2% after the company said Monday it has cut about $3 billion of its debt in Q3, using a combination of free cash flow from operations and proceeds from asset sales and that it expects to eliminate another $800 million in debt by the end of its current Q3 next month.