-- Energy stocks were leaning lower premarket Friday, with the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) declining by 0.2%.
The United States Oil Fund (USO) was down 1% and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.3% lower.
Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was 0.3% lower at $97.55 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil fell 0.6% to $95.38 per barrel, and natural gas futures were down 0.1% at $2.67 per 1 million British Thermal Units.
ConocoPhillips (COP) has sent a team to Venezuela to evaluate the prospects of oil drilling in the country, several media outlets reported, citing a company statement. Shares of ConocoPhillips were 0.4% lower pre-bell.