By Steve Gelsi
Energy stocks caught their breath Thursday after a big rally in
the previous session, with major indexes in the oil, gas and
oil-service businesses flat in early action.
The NYSE Arca Oil Index (XOI) fell 0.1% to 910, cooling off
after a 3.4% rise in the previous session.
The NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index (XNG) rose 0.2% to 415 ahead of
weekly inventory data due later in the day.
The Philadelphia Oil Service Index (OSX) fell 0.2% to 161.
In a hopeful sign for the energy sector, China said its gross
domestic product rose by 7.9% in the second quarter, slightly ahead
of the forecast of 7.7%, according to a report from Dow Jones
Newswires.
In another positive indicator for the economy, the number of
initial jobless claims in the week ended July 11 fell 47,000 to
522,000 - the lowest level since early January, the government
reported.
In a sign of long-term demand for natural-gas infrastructure,
the European Union called for member nations to increase storage
and build more pipelines to cope with any future cutoff in energy
supplies from Russia.
Among stocks in the spotlight, Halliburton Co. (HAL) rose 2.3%
to $21.25. The oil service giant said after the closing bell on
Wednesday that it won a two-year, $450 million contract extension
from StatoilHydro ASA (STO) to provide cementing and fluids for 36
rigs on the Norwegian continental shelf.
-Steve Gelsi; 415-439-6400; AskNewswires@dowjones.com