03:13 PM EST, 11/13/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were rising late Wednesday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index up 0.8% and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) adding 0.9%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index was falling 1%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index was shedding 0.3%.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.3% to $68.33 a barrel while the global benchmark Brent crude contract advanced 0.5% to $72.24 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures gained 2.9% to $2.99 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Shell (SHEL) is looking to sell a majority stake in its portfolio of carbon offset projects amid a market contraction in the sector, Bloomberg reported. Shell shares were fractionally higher.