Oil Settles Lower After Rise In U.S. Crude Inventories

Oil futures ended lower Thursday, snapping a four-day win streak after weekly data showed a rise in U.S. crude inventories. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 29 cents, or 0.5%, to close at $53.77 a barrel. Oil attempted to turn higher after the Energy Information Administration reported a 600,000 barrel rise in inventories last week but soon returned to negative territory.