-- Energy stocks advanced Thursday afternoon with the NYSE Energy Sector Index rising 1.8% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) adding 1.5%.
The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index gained 0.5%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index climbed 0.2%.
In sector news, it will take about six months for the US and Iran to reach a peace deal, and the two sides should extend their ceasefire to cover that period, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing Gulf Arab and European officials familiar with the matter.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 4% to $94.95 a barrel, and global benchmark Brent jumped 5% to $99.64 a barrel.
US natural gas stocks rose by 59 billion cubic feet in the week ended Friday, as expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg, and following an increase of 50 billion in the previous week.
Henry Hub natural gas futures rose 1.1% to $2.64 per 1 million BTU.
In corporate news, TotalEnergies (TTE) shares climbed 4.5% after the company said Q1 exploration and production results are expected to rise significantly, backed by higher oil prices and contributions from new projects.
Equinor (EQNR) said it expects stronger Q1 results in its marketing, midstream, and processing division. The stock rose 4.6%.
Energy Fuels (UUUU) appointed President Ross Bhappu as CEO on Wednesday, succeeding Mark Chalmers, who is retiring from the top job. Energy Fuels shares rose 1.2%.