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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery added 69 cents to $57.23 on the New York Merc, while Brent for January added 83 cents to $62.96 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $21.88 to WTI, down from a discount of $21.76. Natural gas for December added four cents to $2.86. The TSX energy index added 1.59 points to close at 132.77.

EnCana Corp. (ECA) added 48 cents to $6.35 on 43.1 million shares, getting back above $6 for the first time in nearly a month. It has been quietly going about its business even as hordes of headline writers continue to shriek about last Thursday's announcement that it is moving its headquarters to the United States and rebranding as Ovintinv Inc. The appeal of moving is to access greater amounts of U.S. capital, while the appeal of the name Ovintiv is likely to be an enduring mystery. Criticism of both has been near universal. The move "smacks of desperation" and the name is "bewilderingly awkward," according to The Globe and Mail and Macleans, respectively -- and that is to say nothing of the copious columns filled with arguments over whether the word "Canada," or anything like it, is now so repellant to energy investors that EnCana felt compelled to scrub it out of existence. The pundits will dine out on this for a long time to come. In any case, at EnCana itself, life carries on. Insiders are clearly hoping that the overhaul will have the desired effect and spark a much-needed turnaround in the stock. New SEDI filings show that on Friday, five directors and officers -- including chief executive officer Doug Suttles and president Mike McAllister -- spent a total of nearly $500,000 dollars buying 95,800 shares. The average price per share was about $5.21. Back in 2008, EnCana's shares were worth as much as $48.90.

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