U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for a fourth week in a row, putting the rig count down for an eighth consecutive month as producers follow through on plans to cut spending on new drilling and completions. Drillers cut three oil rigs in the week to July 26, bringing the total count down to 776, the lowest since February 2018, General Electric Co’s Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Friday. That compares with 861 rigs operating during the same week a year ago. More than half the total U.S. oil rigs are in the Permian basin in West Texas and eastern New Mexico, where active units increased by three […]