The rig count in the Permian Basin increased by five in the week ending Friday, the latest count by Baker Hughes shows, with 463 rigs active in the region.

Nationally, the oil and gas rig count increased by 13 to a total of 1,045 rigs. A year ago, 885 rigs were active. The count shows that 844 rigs sought oil, an increase of 10 from the previous week, and 199 explored for natural gas, an increase of three from the previous week. The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. It bottomed out in May of 2016 at 404.

The regional benchmark Plains-West Texas Intermediate Posting ended Friday at $67.25 per barrel, up $1 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $70.70 per barrel, up 98 cents from the previous week.

ON THE NET: Baker Hughes rig count.