Basin rig count down five as oil prices dip

The rig count in the Permian Basin was down by five this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 441 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 476 rigs were active in the region.
Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is down six from last week at 969 rigs. A year ago, 1062 rigs were active. The count shows that 788 rigs sought oil, down one from the previous week, and 181 explored for natural gas, down five 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 $49.00 per barrel, down $1.50 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $52.51 per barrel, down $1.48 from the previous week.