Oil prices continued to drop after data from Baker Hughes showed that the number of active U.S. oil-drilling rigs fell by 1 to 515 as of Friday. The total active U.S. rig count, which includes natural-gas rigs, was down 14 at 650. Compared to last year, the total rig count has fallen by 1,026, with the oil rig count down 851. February crude was at $29.34 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down $1.85, or 5.9%. It was at $29.37 before the data.
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