Oil futures were little changed Wednesday afternoon following data that showed a rise in the U.S. rig count. Oil-field services company Baker Hughes said the number of U.S. oil rigs rose by 3 this week to 267. That’s down 403 from the same time last year.
The data was released two days early due to the New Year’s Day holiday on Friday. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery CL.1, -0.14% was unchanged at $48 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after fluctuating between gains and losses in a choppy trading session.