03:22 PM EST, 02/12/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks retreated late Wednesday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index falling 1.9% and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) dropping 2.2%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index shed 1.8%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index was down 0.1%.

US crude oil stocks, including those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, rose 4.3 million barrels in the week ended Friday following a rise of 8.9 million in the previous week. Excluding inventories in the SPR, commercial crude oil stocks rose 4.1 million after a rise of 8.7 million in the previous week, larger than the 2.3 million gain expected in a Bloomberg survey.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 2.7% to $71.34 a barrel, while global benchmark Brent declined 2.4% to $75.14 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures rose 1.4% to $3.57 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Chevron ( CVX ) said Wednesday it will begin slashing its global workforce this year by 15% to 20% to streamline its structure and reduce costs. Its shares fell 1.3%.