Crude Oil Futures Close Flat

Once natural gas prices flipped to the downside, the remainder of its energy peer group followed suit, ending an impressive short-term climb that took crude and heating oil futures to new all-time highs and lifted the price of diesel fuel to its best point in a year.

While some traders may be blaming the EIA inventory report for the retreat, the real cause was "buyer exhaustion," according to Thomas Hartmann, energy analyst at Altavest Worldwide Trading. "Crude stalled while trying to get above the $126.50 a barrel level, so there appears to be a short-term top in the market," Hartmann says. "Crude needs to fall back some and redefine its support level before marching forward again. I don't think this is a full-time top for crude," he added.

Regarding the slide in natural gas prices, Hartmann said that "there is already a large premium built into the market. When the inventory numbers came in as expected, investors weren't left with anything to trade upon. With crude and nat gas at their current levels, the markets need major headline news" to continue moving ahead.

Meanwhile, energy stocks were mixed. Integrated stocks largely advanced, with BP (BP Quote - Cramer on BP - Stock Picks) gaining 1.3% to $72.94, Chevron (CVX Quote - Cramer on CVX - Stock Picks) moving 1% higher to $97.97, and Exxon Mobil (XOM Quote - Cramer on XOM - Stock Picks) adding 0.7% to near $90.50.

Additionally, Petrobras (PBR Quote - Cramer on PBR - Stock Picks), the Brazilian national oil company, gained 1.1% to $67.02 per ADR after Bloomberg published an article promoting the company's offshore exploration activities. The company is reportedly tying up deep-water rigs with long-term contracts at a voracious pace, leaving few leftover rigs available for other companies to drill with.

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