Basin rig count falls as oil prices rise

The rig count in the Permian Basin was down by five this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 473 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 433 rigs were active in the region.
Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is up two from last week at 1,051 rigs. A year ago, 975 rigs were active. The count shows that 857 rigs sought oil, up three from the previous week, and 194 explored for natural gas, down one 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 $52.00 per barrel, up $2.75 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $55.59 per barrel, up $2.87 from the previous week.