09:32 AM EST, 01/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were steady early Friday, with the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF ( XLE ) adding 0.02%.

The United States Oil Fund ( USO ) was 1.6% higher and the United States Natural Gas Fund ( UNG ) was down 1.1%.

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 1.3% at $59.94 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil gained 1.3% to $64.56 per barrel, and natural gas futures were 0.7% lower at $3.11 per 1 million British Thermal Units.

Chevron ( CVX ) shares were flat after the company said its Mediterranean subsidiary and the working interest owners of the Leviathan natural gas field located offshore Israel have reached a final investment decision to expand the production capacity of the production platform.

Petroleo Brasileiro (PBR), or Petrobras, said its 2025 production of 2.4 million barrels of oil per day exceeded its previously announced 2025 to 2029 targets by 0.5 percentage points. Petrobras shares were slightly lower during early trading.

Valero Energy ( VLO ) plans to lay off 237 employees at its Benicia, California, refinery as it permanently winds down operations at the facility, Bloomberg reported, citing a company letter to California's employment regulator and local officials. Valero Energy ( VLO ) stock was up 0.3% during early trading.