GE GE Aerospace

   By Aisha Al-Muslim 
 

The number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. fell by five this week to 742, Baker Hughes, a GE company, reported.

The U.S. oil rig count is typically viewed as a proxy for activity in the sector. After peaking at 1,609 in October 2014, low oil prices put downward pressure on production, and the rig count fell sharply. The oil-rig count generally had been rising since June 2016 before reaching a plateau in August 2017.

The nation's gas-rig count was unchanged at 182 in the past week, according to oil-field services company Baker Hughes.

The U.S. offshore-rig count was down one from last week to 17, which is seven fewer than a year ago.

Oil prices were down 1% at $61.38 a barrel in afternoon trading Friday.

Write to Aisha Al-Muslim at aisha.al-muslim@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 05, 2018 13:40 ET (18:40 GMT)

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