Energy Sector and Crude Oil Prices Helped the S&P 500

The S&P 500 rose ~0.7% to 2,733.01 on May 21 due to the rise in industrial stocks and crude oil prices. The index is at the highest level in more than two months. All of the major sectors in the S&P 500 advanced on May 21.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) rose ~0.8% to $273.36 on May 21. SPY seeks to track the S&P 500 Index’s performance.

The industrial, energy, and real estate sectors rose 1.5%, 1%, and 1%, respectively, on May 21. These sectors supported SPY the most on May 21.

The energy sector accounts for ~6.3% of the S&P 500 Index. The Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) rose 1% to $78.90 on May 21. XLE represents the S&P 500 Index’s energy sector.

The sentiment in the equities and commodities markets could impact each other depending on the magnitude of the moves and various fundamental factors that are affecting each market.

June WTI oil futures rose 1.4% to $72.24 per barrel on May 21—the highest settlement since November 26, 2017. These contracts expired on May 22. Prices rose due to the expectation of a drop in Venezuela’s crude oil production. July WTI oil futures rose 1.4% to $72.35 per barrel on May 21. The United States Oil ETF (USO) rose 1.7% to $14.67 on May 21. USO targets to follow active WTI oil futures’ performance.

June US natural gas futures fell 1% to $2.81 per MMBtu (million British thermal units) on May 21. Prices fell due to the expectation of less demand for natural gas. The United States Natural Gas ETF (UNG) fell 0.3% to $23.13 on May 21. UNG aims to follow active natural gas futures’ performance.

The iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust (GSG) rose 1% to $18.15 on May 21. GSG aims to track an index composed of a diversified group of commodities futures.

In this series, we’ll discuss Venezuela’s crude oil production and US crude oil exports. We’ll also discuss Saudi Arabia’s crude oil production and some crude oil price forecasts.