Energy

Hedge Funds Add to Short Positions as US Oil Rig Count Drops by 21

Paul Ausick

Published: December 12, 2015 9:20 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 4:10 pm

In the period ended December 11, the number of rigs drilling for oil in the United States totaled 524, compared with 545 in the prior week and 1,546 a year ago. Including 185 other rigs drilling for natural gas, there are a total of 709 working rigs in the country, down from 737 week over week and down 1,184 year over year. The data come from the latest Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI) North American Rotary Rig Count released on Friday.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil for February delivery closed last Friday at $39.97 and dropped about 8% to close at $36.76 a week later. Friday’s report from the International Energy Agency capped a week of steadily lower prices.

U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 3.6 million barrels last week, according the Energy Information Administration. The drawdown briefly sent prices higher, but reality quickly prevailed and prices continued their slide. The U.S. crude oil inventory, excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, now stands at 485.9 million barrels.

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