Shares of energy companies fell as investors hedged their bets on the outlook for global growth amid stern warnings from world leaders on the implications of a new round of Covid 19 infections.
United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that a highly infectious new strain of the virus could be more deadly than other variants, raising the prospect of a prolonged shutdown for much of the nation.
President Biden's revocation of a permit for TC Energy's Keystone XL pipeline is raising pressure on Canada's energy industry and weighing on shares of affiliate TC Pipelines, after the new president effectively shut down a project that would have carried 830,000 barrels a day from Alberta to Nebraska and eventually to refiners on the Gulf Coast, as reported earlier.
U.S. inventories of crude oil rose unexpectedly last week, according to weekly data released Friday by the Energy Information Administration. The number of oil rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose by two, according to oilfield services firm Baker Hughes, continuing a steady upward march.
Natural-gas futures finished with a loss of 11% on the week.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-22-21 1709ET
