09:02 AM EDT, 03/19/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were advancing premarket Thursday, with the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) 0.4% higher.

The United States Oil Fund (USO) was 1.6% lower and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was up 0.3%.

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.7% at $96.99 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil gained 5.9% to $113.66 per barrel, and natural gas futures were 4% higher at $3.19 per 1 million British Thermal Units.

Equinor ( EQNR ) shares were up more than 5% after the company said it will establish two new business areas by splitting its marketing, midstream and processing unit in a bid to improve operations and boost value.