America’s oil patch is slowing again, Reuters reports.
Baker Hughes reported the first weekly drop in U.S. oil and gas rigs in a month, with the oil rig count falling to its lowest level in four years.
Total rigs slipped by 10 to 544 nationwide, driven largely by an eight-rig drop in Texas—the state’s weakest showing since 2021. The decline reflects a broader two-year trend as producers favor shareholder payouts and debt reduction over new drilling amid softer crude and gas prices.
Yet the picture isn’t uniformly bearish.
Natural gas rigs ticked up to their highest level since mid-2023, and federal forecasters expect production to climb anyway.
The EIA projects U.S. oil output will hit 13.6 million barrels per day in 2025, even as crude prices are expected to fall for a third straight year. Gas producers, buoyed by a projected 58% jump in 2025 spot prices, are also poised to ramp up activity—hinting at a complicated, price-sensitive energy landscape ahead.
