A trader waits for the opening of Whiting Petroleum’s stock at the post where it is traded on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange March 24, 2015. Whiting Petroleum Corp cut its 2015 budget on Wednesday less than two weeks after raising it, a turnaround that underscores the uncertainty engulfing the energy industry while crude prices sit roughly 50 percent below last year’s levels. The company, North Dakota’s largest oil producer, tends to be seen as a key barometer of the health of the U.S. shale industry. Its spending trepidation is sure to have ripple effects on drilling contractors and other oilfield service providers. Whiting now plans to spend $2.15 billion this year, running eight drilling rigs instead of a previous plan for 11, and mulling small divestments to bolster the company’s balance sheet. Just 12 days ago the company had boosted its budget by 15 percent […]