Monday dawned bleak for oil stock investors as a sell-off that began early last week gained steam. As of 11:20 a.m. ET, the cost of a barrel of WTI crude oil had fallen to $75.50 -- down 5.7% from Friday's close and the lowest price seen so far this year. The situation with Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, is both better and worse. 

It's better because at $82.50 a barrel, Brent oil isn't quite as cheap as it was way back in January 2022, for example. Back then, Brent prices briefly fell below $80 a barrel, and Brent crude could be had for almost today's prices as recently as September. But worse -- Brent oil is currently 5.8% below Friday's close, a slightly more negative move than WTI crude prices are experiencing.

Oil stocks are suffering in consequence, with Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) falling 5.7% this morning, smaller oil producer Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN) down 6.4%, and independent oil producer Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ: FANG) down 8.8%.

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Source Fool.com