A drop in energy prices is wreaking havoc on oil and gas companies in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
The drop comes from the fall in crude oil prices Monday, which dropped 4-5 percent and were trading under $31 per barrel.
The low prices have been causing major oil and gas companies to announce job layoffs for 2016, with the low prices making it less profitable to produce crude oil in states where fracking has led to an energy boom in the past few years. Oil and gas production from shale has made the U.S. a leader in global oil and gas production, challenging titans Saudi Arabia and Russia.
Chevron’s stock price fell 2 percent after opening bell on Monday. ExxonMobil was not far behind, losing more than 1 percent in its share price.
Many of the country’s major oil and gas companies will begin issuing their fourth-quarter earnings reports later this week. Look for low oil prices to be a top issue of concern for the companies going into 2016.
John Watson, chairman and CEO of Chevron, will host the company’s 2015 fourth quarter earnings call on Friday.
ExxonMobil will host a Feb. 2 earnings call.
