With inflation surging, led by lofty oil and natural gas prices in 2021, Federal Reserve policymakers this week said they would hasten their drawdown of pandemic aid and signaled they could raise interest rates multiple times in 2022.

While the shift presents potential downsides for energy companies in the year ahead – notably, higher borrowing costs — commodities markets responded favorably. Oil prices climbed Thursday, the first full trading session after the announcement by the Fed, as it is known. Market participants interpreted the policy change as a bullish read on the economy and energy demand, recent fears about the new variant of the coronavirus aside.

“The Fed’s confidence in the strength and sustainability of the recovery in spite of the Omicron variant came as...