Key Energy Events This Week

The EIA’s latest oil and natural gas inventory data are scheduled to be released on November 21. The data could be an important short-term driver for oil and natural gas prices.

Energy stocks respond to long-term changes in oil and natural gas prices. However, energy stocks are also impacted by short-term energy price movements. Last week, Murphy Oil (MUR), EQT (EQT), and Apache (APA) returned 1.1%, -14.9%, and 0.9%, respectively. Meanwhile, US crude oil January futures fell 6.1%, while natural gas December futures rose 14.9%.

The SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (XOP) and the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) invest in energy stocks. Any changes in oil and natural gas prices are expected to influence XOP and XLE, which fell 4.5% and 1.9%, respectively, last week.