Active U.S. Rig Count Climbs, But Oil Rigs Continue Descent

The total number of active U.S. drilling rigs climbed as of June 26, according to data from Baker Hughes released on Friday. The total active rig count was at 859, up 2 from last week. But the number of active oil drilling rigs saw a weekly fall of 3 to 628. That was their 29th straight week of declines. Compared to last year, the total rig count has fallen by 1,014, with the oil rig count down 930. August crude was down 14 cents, or 0.2%, at $59.56 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It traded around $59.57 before the data.