Energy stocks climb as Brent falls and Delek shares surge

The NYSE Energy Sector Index and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) both gained ground late Tuesday afternoon, rising 1.6% and 1.7% respectively. The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index posted a 0.5% increase, while the Dow Jones US Utilities Index climbed 0.7%. West Texas Intermediate crude oil edged up 0.5% to $94.22 a barrel, in contrast to the global benchmark Brent crude, which slipped 0.9% to $105.73 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures surged 4.6% to $3.31 per 1 million BTU.

Bloomberg reported that Iran has intensified attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, a move that could impede cargo traffic through the waterway after volumes had nearly recovered to prewar levels earlier in the month. The report attributed the information to shipping industry sources.

In corporate developments, Vice President JD Vance stated at a campaign stop in Tyler, Texas, that the Trump administration will collaborate with Delek US Holdings (DK) to expand a refinery in Texas. Bloomberg covered the remarks on Tuesday, and Delek shares jumped 4.1%.

American Electric Power (AEP) announced it agreed to buy up to 1.6 gigawatts of power generation equipment from Mainspring Energy through 2034. The company pointed to rising electricity demand from AI data centers as the driver for the purchase. American Electric Power shares were up 1.3% during the session.

BP (BP) shares rose 3.8% after the company said its Q3 net debt is expected to fall to a range of $13.5 billion to $14.5 billion, down from $22.3 billion at the end of Q2. Separately, Equinor (EQNR) shares gained 2.4% following an agreement to supply Eneco with approximately 9 terawatt-hours of natural gas annually for five years, with deliveries set to start on Oct. 1.