premise: 
  Norton Co. said net income for the third quarter fell 6% to $20.6 million, or 98 cents a share, from $22 million, or $1.03 a share.
  Operating profit for the abrasives, engineering materials and petroleum services concern was $19.2 million, or 91 cents a share, up 3% from $18.7 million, or 87 cents a share.
  
  The company had a tax credit of $1.4 million. In the year-earlier quarter, the tax credit was $3.3 million. Sales rose 8% to $368.5 million from $340.7 million.
  Operating profit in the company's abrasives segment rose 16% while operating profit in the engineering materials segment rose 2%. However, the company's petroleum services segment, while profitable, was hurt by high financing costs associated with the company's buy-out of a 50% stake in Eastman Christensen Co. from Texas Eastern Corp. last June. Norton and Texas Eastern had each held a 50% stake in Eastman in a joint venture.
  Norton announced earlier this month that it was exploring the possible sale of all or part of Eastman Christensen.
   What led to the company's petroleum services segment being hurt?
hypothesis: the possible sale of all or part of Eastman Christensen