July 21, 2026, 4:27 p.m. ET
Energy stocks are having a big month as renewed hostilities between the U.S. and Iran have sent oil prices surging — but it’s not solely the conflict in the Middle East that makes the sector appear so attractive to investors.
The S&P 500’s energy sector
XX:SP500.10 has jumped 10.5% in July through Tuesday. That puts it on track for its biggest monthly climb since January — exceeding even its March rally when oil prices began surging after the start of the Iran war, according to FactSet data. Energy is easily the index’s best-performing sector so far this month, helping to fuel a gain of 30.4% so far this year.
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