Oil Prices Cut Gains As Data Show U.S. Oil-rig Count Up 23 Consecutive Weeks

Baker Hughes on Friday reported that the number of active U.S. rigs drilling for oil climbed by 11 to 758 rigs this week. That marked a 23nd weekly rise in a row. The total active U.S. rig count, which includes oil and natural-gas rigs, rose by eight to 941, according to Baker Hughes. Oil prices pared earlier gains following the data, with August West Texas Intermediate crude up 9 cents, or 0.2%, at $42.83 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange for the session. It was trading at $43.07 before the data.