PSX - Oil and gas stocks top today's leaderboard as oil resumes upward climb

The energy sector (XLE +1.9%) leads the S&P sector standings by a wide margin, supported by a continuation of the uptrend in the oil price and interest in the sector as an inflation hedge, particularly in light of the January CPI report. March WTI crude (CL1:COM) +1.8% to $91.53/bbl and April Brent (CO1:COM) +1.6% to $92.92/bbl, although both benchmarks are slightly lower for the week. Among Friday's top performers: HFC +5.8%, NOV +5.4%, BKR +4.8%, PSX +3.3%, VLO +3.3%, OXY +3%, SLB +3%, HAL +2.4%. ConocoPhillips (COP +0.8%) trades flat despite a Bloomberg report that it is weighing a $1B-plus sale of Permian Basin assets. Although oil's rally has slowed this week, global demand continues to rebound, with OPEC suggesting the recovery could surpass its forecasts this year and the IEA saying prices could rise further because of OPEC's struggle to revive production. The energy group already has jumped 23% YTD after

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Oil and gas stocks top today's leaderboard as oil resumes upward climb