U.S. Oil Rig Count Rises, While Gas Rig Count Falls

The number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose this week by one to 737, 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 has generally been rising over the past year.

The nation's gas rig count fell by 5 to 172 in the past week, according to oil-field services company Baker Hughes.

The U.S. offshore-rig count is the same as last week at 20, which is two fewer than a year ago.

Oil prices were up almost 2% at $53.67 a barrel in afternoon trading Friday.

Write to Allison Prang at allison.prang@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 27, 2017 14:12 ET (18:12 GMT)