US rig count hits 11-week high

The number of rigs drilling for crude oil and natural gas in the US increased by five to 626 units last week, reaching an 11-week high, according to Baker Hughes.

PHOTO: Oil field with pump jacks in Texas, US. Getty Images

The number of oil rigs increased to 503, the highest in 11 weeks, but 97 fewer than the oil rigs recorded a year earlier.

However, the US natural gas rig count dropped by one unit to 120.

There were also three miscellaneous rigs in operation – unchanged for the seventh week in a row.

The total oil and gas rig count in the Permian Basin in Texas - the biggest US oil field – rose by two units to 314.

The total US oil and gas rig count was down by 127, or 18%, from a year earlier.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

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