Thanks to the Russia-Ukraine war, the energy sector has been red hot this year. While OPEC recently cut its 2022 demand growth forecast for oil for a second straight month, trade and production disruptions due to the Russia-Ukraine war are expected to keep prices above $100 per barrel this year. Also, the geopolitical crisis has pushed gas prices to record highs, and the worst is yet to come, according to experts.
Given the industry’s profitability prospects, fundamentally sound and high dividend-yielding stocks could be ideal bets now. Investors’ interest in energy stocks is evident in the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLE) 35.7% returns over the past six months.
