Hess (HES) (NOG) (PBR) (HK) Close Down as Oil, Gas Prices Fall

As perceptions demand for crude oil and gasoline will drop because of high prices, Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES), Northern Oil and Gas (Amex:NOG), Petrohawk Energy Corp. (NYSE:HK) and Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) all closed down Monday, as the overall sector took a breather.

Crude-oil futures dropped Monday as investors were worried about the possibility for slowing demand for oil after debt-ratings company Standard & Poor’s slashed its outlook on the U.S. government’s credit rating which resulted in a move away from stocks and growth-leveraged commodities.

Benchmark light, sweet crude for May delivery fell $2.54, or 2.3%, to $107.12 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That ended a three-day winning streak for oil.

Gasoline for May delivery on Monday was down 4 cents, or 1.1%, to $3.25 a gallon.

May heating oil fell 4 cents, or 1.3%, to $3.18 a gallon.

May natural gas was lower by 7 cents, or 1.6%, to $4.14 per million British thermal units.

Hess Corporation closed Monday at $77.21, down $1.67, or 2.12 percent. Northern Oil and Gas ended the day at $22.10, falling $1.26, or 5.39 percent. Petrohawk Energy Corp. closed at $26.00, dropping $0.31, or 1.18 percent. Petrobras closed at $36.33, losing $1.48, or 3.91 percent.