The Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price is dipping into the red today.
At time of writing, shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) energy giant are down 2.6% to $33.52.
But don't go breaking out your tiny violin for Woodside shareholders just yet.
Today is the first time in 7 trading days that the Woodside share price has gone backwards.
Yesterday, shares closed at $34.41. That's the highest price in more than 2 years, going all the way back to February 2020 before the pandemic knocked the stuffing out of oil and gas prices.
What's happening with the Woodside share price?
It's not just Woodside coming under some selling pressure today.
The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) is down 2.7%, compared to a 0.2% retreat on the ASX 200.
Why are ASX energy shares underperforming?
It all boils down to oil and gas prices.
After soaring higher all month following oil-rich Russia's aggressive posturing and then invasion of Ukraine, crude oil prices dipped overnight. Brent crude fell 0.7% to US$122 per barrel, according to data from Bloomberg.
While that's no major fall, and still up from US$91 per barrel just a month ago, investors may be looking to take some profits off the table after riding ASX energy shares to multi-year highs.
As for the Woodside share price, despite today's retrace it remains up 48% for the year.
