By Angela Chen
The U.S. oil-rig count rose by five to 664 in the latest week,
according to Baker Hughes Inc.
The number of U.S. oil-drilling rigs, which is a proxy for
activity in the oil industry, had fallen sharply since oil prices
headed south last year. The rig count had dropped for 29 straight
weeks before rising for two weeks and then falling again. Now it
has risen for two straight weeks.
Oil prices fell nearly 60% from June 2014 to a six-year low in
March, as soaring production from the U.S. and other countries
overwhelmed global demand.
There are still about 59% fewer rigs working since a peak of
1,609 in October, though the pace of declines has slowed
considerably recently. In late May, several U.S. shale-oil
companies said they were ready to bring rigs back into service,
setting up the first big test of their ability to quickly react to
rising crude prices.
According to Baker Hughes, gas rigs were down by seven to 209
this week.
The U.S. offshore rig count was up three to 34 in the latest
week, though it is still off 24 from a year earlier.
For all rigs, including natural gas, the week's total was down
two to 874, which is down 1,015 rigs from the same period last
year.
Write to Angela Chen at angela.chen@wsj.com
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