Crude-oil holds firm loss as Baker Hughes weekly data show U.S. oil rigs rose by 2 to 387

Baker Hughes
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on Friday reported that the number of active U.S. rigs drilling for oil rose by 2 to 387 this week. The total active U.S. rig count, which includes those drilling for natural gas, rose by three to stand at 491, according to Baker Hughes. September West Texas Intermediate crude
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-1.00%
CL00,
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held a sharp drop, with the contract off 68 cents, or 1%, to $68.42 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, the contract is headed for its sharpest weekly decline, over 7%, since the period ended Oct. 30, 2020, FactSet data show.