Shale drilling slips back to one-year low as oil rally falters

CALGARY and HOUSTON (Bloomberg) -- American oil explorers cut back on the number of drilling rigs this week, matching a one-year low reached last month, as crude’s rally falters amid growing concerns over demand.

Working oil rigs in the U.S. fell by five to 788, according to data released Wednesday by oilfield-services provider Baker Hughes. That matches the count for the second week of June, which was the lowest since February 2018. In the Permian basin, though, drillers added two rigs, raising the total to 443.

A decision by OPEC and its allies this week to extend their production curbs failed to give oil a boost as the market increasingly focuses on the outlook for slowing global growth and U.S. crude production near record levels.

U.S. crude production rose by 100,000 bpd last week to 12.2 million, according to the Energy Information Administration. It reached a record 12.4 million in the last week of May.