Oil Prices Trade Slightly Lower As Baker Hughes Rig-count Data Show Weekly Climb

The number of active U.S. rigs drilling for oil climbed by 13 to 523 rigs this week. The total active U.S. rig count, which includes oil and natural-gas rigs, also rose by 16 to 653, according to Baker Hughes weekly report. Prices for oil held onto their earlier losses after the rig data. February crude was of 12 cents, or 0.2%, at $52.84 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for February was off 11 cents, or 0.2%, at $54.94 a barrel.