COM - Energy shares broadly in the red after surprise U.S. oil inventory build

The S&P energy ETF ([[XLE]] -2.7%) trails in today's sector standings as oil prices fell slightly after industry data showed a surprise increase in U.S. crude inventories.March WTI crude (CL1:COM) -0.7% to $52.95/bbl after the American Petroleum Institute reported U.S. crude supply climbed 2.6M barrels in the week to Jan. 15, compared with forecasts for a decline; the EIA is due to release its weekly inventory report on Friday."Oil prices look a tad vulnerable to potential profit-taking after U.S. crude stockpiles bearishly rose," says Axi chief market strategist Stephen Innes.Exxon Mobil ([[XOM]] -2.6%) and Chevron ([[CVX]] -3.2%) are off sharply after Jefferies initiated the former with an Underperform rating and downgraded Chevron to Hold.Occidental Petroleum ([[OXY]] -4%) is the weakest performer in the sector, Schlumberger ([[SLB]] -3.5%) slips to its lowest in 10 days ahead of tomorrow's release of Q4 results, and Kinder Morgan ([[KMI]] -2.7%) backtracks from a seven-month

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Energy shares broadly in the red after surprise U.S. oil inventory build