Energy stocks were climbing sharply Friday afternoon, while the S&P 500 struggled for direction, as U.S. oil prices saw their largest weekly gain since early April. The S&P 500’s energy sector XX:SP500.10 was up 2.3% heading toward the closing bell Friday, while the broader U.S. stock market was mixed, according to FactSet data, at last check. The S&P 500 SPX was about flat in late afternoon trading, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA slipped 0.3% and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite COMP gained 0.2%. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude CL00CL.1CLQ23 for August delivery rose 2.9% on Friday to settle at $73.86 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest closing price since late May. Still, energy stocks in the S&P 500 were on track for a modest weekly decline of 0.5%, while the broader index was on pace to fall 0.9%, FactSet data show, at last check.
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