03:28 PM EDT, 08/06/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were lower in late Wednesday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index down 0.7% and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) dropping 1.1%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index fell 1.5%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index shed 0.5%.

US crude oil stocks, including those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell by 2.8 million barrels in the week ended Friday following an increase of 7.9 million in the previous week. Excluding inventories in the SPR, commercial crude oil stocks fell by 3 million after a gain of 7.7 million in the previous week, compared with expectations for a steady reading in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 1.9% to $63.90 a barrel, and global benchmark Brent dropped 1.7% to $66.47 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures rose 2.4% to $3.08 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, LandBridge ( LB ) said Wednesday it signed a 10-year surface use and pore space reservation agreement with Devon Energy ( DVN ) . LandBridge ( LB ) shares edged up 0.4% and Devon was fractionally higher.