US drillers have added oil rigs for a fifth consecutive week, according to Baker Hughes Inc. Drillers added three oil rigs in the week to July 29, bringing the total rig count up to 374, compared with 664 a year ago, according to the recent Baker Hughes weekly report.
Since early June when U.S. crude prices tipped above USD $50 a barrel, drillers have added 55 oil rigs before this week. A similar price rally last year to over USD $60 a barrel in May-June spurred drillers to add 47 rigs in July to August.
Analysts at Simmons & Co, energy specialists at US investment bank Piper Jaffray, forecast the total oil and natural rig count would average 492 in 2016, 686 in 2017 and 964 in 2018.