Petrobras (PBR) (TSO) (SHI) (CVX) (APC) Trade Positive as Oil, Gas Rise

Crude oil, natural gas and gasoline prices jumped Tuesday, pushing up the share prices of Petrobras (NYSE:PBR), Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO), SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI), Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and Anadarko (NYSE:APC).

Benchmark crude for May delivery rose $1.33 to settle at $103.88 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Heating oil jumped 3.94 cents to settle at $3.0012 a gallon. Gasoline futures climbed 10.13 cents to settle at $3.3797 a gallon, while natural gas for June delivery increased 8.7 cents to settle at $4.303 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Uncertainty remains as to the effects of the flooding along the Mississippi River could have on regional refinery operations, which could slow down gasoline production and put upward pressure on prices.

Anadarko (APC) closed at $77.14, up $0.77, or 1.01 percent.

Vaalco (EGY) (SHI) (VLO) (SLB) (BEXP) Trade Mixed as Oil Prices Jump

Most oil and related companies performed strong Monday, as Vaalco Energy (NYSE:EGY), SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI), Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO), Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) and Brigham Exploration (NASDAQ:BEXP) traded up as the price of oil rebounded.

Crude oil for June delivery climbed $5.37 to settle at $102.55 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the largest one-day boost since February 22.

Brent crude for June settlement jumped $6.77, or 6.2 percent, to $115.90 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.

Wholesale gasoline prices soared 5 percent on Monday to $3.20 a gallon on fears that refineries in Mississippi may have to shut down because of the Mississippi River flooding.

The average U.S. price of a gallon of regular gasoline Monday fell by a penny to $3.96, according to AAA.

Immediate delivery futures of Texas crude oil rose $5.53 to $102.71 a barrel. Natural gas was up 0.06 cents to $4.17 per mbtu, while gasoline prices fell 20.17 cents to 329.18 cents a gallon.

Brigham Exploration (NASDAQ:BEXP) closed Monday at $29.34, gaining $1.01, or 3.57 percent.

Shares of (SHI) (NOG) (TAT) (END) (PTR) Trade Mixed as Oil Closed Down 15% Last Week

Companies exposed to oil and the industry traded mixed to end the week, as oil prices plummeted 15 percent last week, taking SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI), Northern Oil and Gas (Amex:NOG), TransAtlantic Petroleum (NYSE:TAT), Endeavour International (NYSE:END), PetroChina (NYSE:PTR), and others, down with it.

Light, sweet crude oil for June delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange dropped $2.62 to settle at $97.18 a barrel, matching the eight-week low of March 15. The U.S. Oil Fund (USO) closed down 1.1 percent on Friday.

For the week, the June oil futures contract fell 14.7 percent to $113.93.

Light, sweet crude for June delivery fell $2.62, or 2.6%, to close at $97.18 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In London, Brent crude finished the day off $1.67 at $109.13 per barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

Republicans went on the offensive against higher oil and gas prices by passing a bill to hasten the leasing process dragging on in the Gulf of Mexico as the Obama administration drag their feet on taking action. The bill would also require leasing to be allowed off the coast of Virginia.

According to Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), the bill helped push down the price of oil as it sent a message to the market they're serious about the future supply.

All Obama has done so far has obsessed on the fantasy of green, clean or so-called alternative energy; a dubious matter at best, and at worst, ignoring what they country needs now and is available to it.

In other Nymex trading for June contracts, heating oil fell 4.12 cents to $2.8457 a U.S. gallon and gasoline futures were down 0.53 cents to $3.0901 a U.S. gallon. Natural gas fell 3.4 cents to $4.297 per 1,000 cubic feet.

SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (SHI) closed Friday at $49.66, jumping $3.48, or 7.54 percent.

Chevron (CVX) (OAS) (RRC) (WTI) (SHI) Pressured as Oil Falls

Shares of oil and oil-related companies Chevron (NYSE:CVX), Oasis Petroleum (NYSE:OAS), Range Resources (NYSE:RRC), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI) were pressured Thursday as crude for June delivery dropped below the $100 a barrel mark.

Crude oil for June delivery was down $9.44, or 8.6 percent, to $99.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price has fallen 12 percent so far this week, declining every day of the week. Crude has soared 25 percent over the last year.

Gasoline for May delivery was down 22.71 cents, or 6.8 percent, to $3.0954 a gallon on the Nymex, the lowest settlement in five weeks. Gasoline has jumped 39 percent in a year.

Averaged across the nation, regular gasoline at the pump increased 0.3 cent to $3.985a gallon on Wednesday, according to the website of AAA. That's highest price of gasoline since July 24, 2008.

Heating oil for May delivery was down 25.61 cents, or 8.1 percent, to $2.8869 a gallon on the Nymex. Heating oil has climbed 32 percent over the last year.

The New York Mercantile Exchange reported that oil futures settled at $99.80, down $9.44 or 8.6 percent on Thursday.

Government figures show gasoline demand in America has dropped about 2 percent over the last month, which added to rises in inventory, should push gasoline prices down again.

Chevron (CVX) closed Thursday at $102.62, down $2.06, or 1.97 percent.

Marathon (MRO) (DVN) (SHI) (HK) (OAS) Trade Down on Slowing Oil Demand

Oil companies and other industry-related companies Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN), SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI), Petrohawk Energy Corp. (NYSE:HK), Oasis Petroleum (NYSE:OAS) and Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) all closed down Wednesday as oil prices took a breather.

Oil prices dropped after a government report showed that inventories are growing as demand softens in the U.S. Benchmark crude for June delivery was down $1.81 to settle at $109.24 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In other NYMEX trading for June contracts, heating oil fell 4.78 cents to settle at $3.143 a gallon, gasoline futures lost 0.69 cent to $3.3225 a gallon and natural gas was lower by 9.4 cents to $4.644 per 1,000 cubic feet.

The U.S. dollar index shrunk 0.15 percent to $73.01, down from Tuesday's 73.127 close. The dollar index has fallen 7.5 percent so far in 2011.

Petrohawk Energy Corp. (HK) closed Wednesday at $24.04, falling $1.17, or 4.64 percent.

Venoco Inc. (VQ) (NOV) (SLB) (SHI) (HAL) Trade Down as Oil Demand Falls

Decreasing demand for fuel has pushed down oil inventories and the price of oil, putting pressure on Venoco Inc. (NYSE:VQ), National-Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE:NOV), Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB). SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI) and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL).

Light, sweet crude for June delivery settled down $2.47, or 2.2%, at $111.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. London Brent crude for June fell $2.67 to settle at $122.45 a barrel.

Front-month June reformulated gasoline blendstock, or RBOB, settled down $1.85 cents, or 0.6%, at $3.3294 a gallon. June heating oil lost 6.13 cents, or 1.9%, to settle at $3.1908 a gallon.

Gasoline prices on average across America have jumped to just under $4.00 a gallon, rising to $3.97 a gallon for regular gas, according to AAA.

Silver is considered the key catalyst for downward pressure on oil prices and trading, as it has become a proxy to some for risk appetite among commodity traders.

After selling out of silver commodity traders followed up with divesting of positions in oil as well.

Even so, it appears the slight strengthening of the U.S dollar played a bit role Tuesday as well.

Marathon (MRO) (SHI) (KMP) (VQ) (ECA) Trade Mixed on Gas, Oil Price Jumps

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO), SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE:KMP), Venoco Inc. (NYSE:VQ) and Encana Corp. (NYSE:ECA) close mixed Friday as oil and gasoline prices jump again.

Nymex light, sweet crude oil for June delivery rose $1.07 a barrel, to $113.93 a barrel. That's the highest close in two-a-half-years.

On Nymex, reformulated gasoline blendstock futures for May delivery expired at $3.4648 a gallon, up 3.5 cents Friday. That is the highest level since July 14, 2008. Prices have soared 23.17 cents, or 7.2 percent, over the past week.

AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report said the nationwide average price of regular gasoline was $3.909 a gallon Friday, up 6.1 cents from last week.

May heating oil expired at $3.2558 a gallon, up 2.42 cents, and the highest since April 8.

Tightening inventory and higher gasoline prices continue to push oil prices up. Another major factor, as it is with most commodities, is the ongoing collapse of the U.S. dollar. That will continue based on Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's comments he's not going to raise interest rates.

Marathon closed Friday at $52.72, gaining $0.52, or 1.00 percent.

Kodiak (KOG) (DRQ) (EPM) (PQ) (SHI) Close Mixed as Oil, Gas Rise

Dril-Quip, Inc. (NYSE:DRQ), Evolution Petroleum (Amex:EPM), PetroQuest Energy (NYSE:PQ), Kodiak Oil & Gas (Amex:KOG) and SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI) closed mixed as oil, gasoline and natural gas moved up in price Thursday.

Oil settled higher in volatile trading Thursday, pushed up by a collapsing U.S. dollar. After soaring to close to $114 a barrel, West Texas Intermediate crude settled up 10 cents, at $112.86, in futures trading in New York.

Brent North Sea crude oil fell 11 cents to settle at $125.02 a barrel on the Ice Futures exchange.

In futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas climbed 15.7 cents to settle at $4.63 per million British thermal units.

Gasoline for May delivery jumped 1.04 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $3.4298 a gallon, the highest settlement since July 14, 2008. Futures have risen 47 percent in the past year.

The Dollar Index fell to the lowest level since July 31, 2008. The index was down 0.5 percent to 73.139, its eighth straight daily decline.

Berry (BRY) (EPD) (CLR) (SHI) Close Up as Oil Settles at $112.21

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD), Continental Resources (NYSE:CLR), Berry Petroleum (NYSE:BRY) and SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI) closed up Tuesday as oil for June delivery fell below the $112.21 it settled at, as the American Petroleum Institute reported at 4:30 PM EDT that U.S. crude-oil stockpiles soared 4.91 million barrels to 361 million. Apache was the only company of the four trading in the black Tuesday.

Oil for June delivery settled at $112.21 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil has risen 33 percent in the past year.

Prices dropped from the settlement after the American Petroleum Institute reported at 4:30 p.m. that U.S. crude-oil stockpiles soared 4.91 million barrels to 361 million. June oil was down 49 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $111.79 a barrel in electronic trading at 4:32 PM EDT.

Brent crude for June settlement on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange jumped 48 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $124.14 a barrel.

The dollar fell for a sixth day against the euro, equaling the longest losing streak since May 2009. Expectations are the Federal Reserve will continue to keep measures in to allegedly support the U.S. economy.

Gasoline climbed over 53 cents a gallon from January to March as unrest in Libya threatened its oil fields and helped push oil from $91 to $107 a barrel. The national average for gasoline is closing in on $3.90 a gallon. Diesel is at about $4.14.

Oil averaged $94.64 a barrel between January and March, compared with $78.89 in the same period last year.

Natural gas prices continue to stay low in comparison to three years ago. It's now trading at $4.38 per 1,000 cubic feet. In April 2008, natural gas contracts generated over twice that.

Encana (ECA) (SHI) (CAM) (COP) Close Up as Oil, Gas Continue to Climb

Encana Corp. (NYSE:ECA), SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI), Cameron International (NYSE:CAM) and ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) closed mixed Thursday as oil and gas prices continue to move up.

Crude oil prices climbed above $112 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday while the U.S. dollar was up after three days of faltering.

The dollar index jumped 0.14 percent to 74.10, making up a little lost ground.

May delivery crude oil rose 80 cents in New York to $112.25 a barrel. Home heating oil fell 1.85 cents to $3.2174 a gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline was up 2.93 cents to $3.2777 a gallon.

Henry Hub natural gas prices gained 11.3 cents to $4.423 per million British thermal units.

According to the AAA, the national average price of unleaded gasoline rose to $3.848 a gallon Friday from Thursday's $3.84.

ConocoPhillips closed Thursday at $80.73, gaining $0.74, or 0.93 percent. Cameron International ended the day at $54.53, falling $0.35, or 0.64 percent. SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical closed at $48.95, down $0.10, or 0.20 percent. Encana Corp. closed the session at $32.56, dropping $0.22, or 0.67 percent.

ConocoPhillips (COP) Joined by Sinopec (SHI) in Aussie LNG Deal

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) announced Friday it will be joined by Sinopec (NYSE:SHI) in a liquefied natural gas venture in Australia, where they'll acquire a 15 percent stake in the project.

Also known as China Petrochemical Corp., they will purchase a stake in a venture dubbed Australia Pacific LNG Pty Ltd.

Before the deal ConocoPhillips was a 50/50 partner with Origin Energy in the project, with each dropping their stakes to 42.5 percent.

While financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed, what was disclosed is Sinopec will take 4.3 million tons of liquefied natural gas from the project over a 20-year period.

After passing Australian environmental hurdles this week, ConocoPhillips said LNG shipments should begin in 2015.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Changing Focus to Domestic Energy Supply

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE:OXY) announced Friday they're investing about $3.2 billion in the U.S. energy sector, while divesting of its Argentine properties, which they're selling for $2.5 billion to Sinopec (NYSE:SHI).

In the near term, the sale of their Argentine properties will give a boost to earnings in the first quarter.

A couple of larger domestic deals for Occidental are the acquisition of South Texas from Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS-A) for $1.8 billion, which will produce about 200 million cubic feet per day of gas equivalent.

The other deal is the acquisition of 180,000 acres in Three Forks and Bakken for $1.4 billion. They are both located in North Dakota.

Occidental added they're going to raise their dividend to $6 cents a quarter, an increase of 21 percent from the 38 cents a quarter they now pay out. That will be effective for the April 15 payment.

The company said their confidence in increasing free cash flow was behind the dividend decision.

Occidental was trading at $92.37, up $1.30, or 1.43 percent, as of 1:09 PM EST.