Energy Stocks, Led by Valero, Dive on Report

Oil prices will be on the frontburner of President Obama's conversation with Saudi Arabian officials today. Investors are thinking oil today, too, as a double-whammy of bad oil info sent energy stocks tumbling by the afternoon.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said today that crude oil inventories confounded expectations in spiking by 2.9 million barrels. That brings the inventories up to 366 million barrels for the week ending last Friday, indicating that oil demand may be slowing.

Analysts from Platts had forecasted a 2 million barrel drop in the week. ...