Schlumberger profit beats as drilling demand surges

Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield services provider, reported better-than-expected quarterly profit and revenue on Friday, as strong demand in North America helped offset weakness in Europe and the Middle East.

Schlumberger is the first major oilfield services provider to report earnings and is seen as a barometer for the industry's performance.

Oilfield service providers such as Schlumberger and Halliburton, which help explorers locate oil and drill wells, saw a slump in demand after crude oil prices went on a free fall, starting 2014.

However, shale producers in North America have been actively drilling since oil recovered to hover around $50.

Drillers added seven oil rigs in the week to July 7, bringing the total count up to 763. That is the most since April 2015, according to a closely watched Baker Hughes report.

Schlumberger's revenue rose 4.2 percent to $7.46 billion in the second quarter, beating the average analysts' estimate of $7.23 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue from North America surged nearly 27 percent to $2.20 billion in the three months ended June 30.

Excluding items, the company earned 35 cents per share, above expectation of 30 cents.

The Houston-based company's shares were marginally up at $67.60 in premarket trading on Friday.

(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)