US oil rig count breaks loss streak

The number of rigs extracting crude oil and natural gas in the US rose by one unit to 620 last week, after falling for two consecutive weeks, Baker Hughes reported.

PHOTO: An Oilfield worker welds an end cap to a pipe as sparks fly next to a derrick at an oil and gas drilling pad site. Getty Images

However, crude oil rigs dropped by two units to 497 - the lowest level in two months. The US natural gas rig count rose by three units to 120 last week. There were also three miscellaneous rigs in operation, the same as the prior week.

The total oil and gas rig count in the Permian Basin in Texas - the biggest US oil field – dropped by two units, from 309 to 307.

The total US oil and gas rig count was down by 20%, or 151 units, from a year earlier.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

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