03:55 PM EDT, 07/14/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were higher late Tuesday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index up 0.3% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) adding 0.2%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was down 0.3%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index was fractionally higher.

President Donald Trump withdrew his proposal to charge a 20% toll on cargo transiting the Strait, according to his social media post on Tuesday. "Based on highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership, I have decided to replace the 20% United States Reimbursement Fee with Trade and Investment Deals that the various Gulf States will be making into the United States." There will be a "FULL Blockade, but only on Ships coming to and from Iranian ports, or carrying anything have to do with Iranian cargo," Trump said on Truth Social.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 2% to $79.70 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract gained 2.4% to $85.30 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures increased 0.7% to $2.92 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Thomas Barrack, US special envoy for Syria and Iraq, has held talks with officials from both countries as well as Chevron ( CVX ) and other companies about reviving a defunct pipeline running from Iraq to the western coast of Syria, Bloomberg reported. Chevron ( CVX ) shares were down 0.2%.

Patterson-UTI Energy ( PTEN ) shares rose 1.6% after Piper Sandler upgraded the stock to overweight from neutral.

Shell (SHEL) will receive a production-linked tax credit from Nigeria for its Bonga Southwest Aparo deepwater project, Bloomberg reported. Shell shares were up 0.4%.

Bloom Energy ( BE ) short sellers have made key mistakes on the company's access to the rare-earth mineral scandium and ignore its recent filings showing it has resolved its sourcing constraints, RBC said in a note. Bloom Energy ( BE ) shares rose 4.2%.