Baker Hughes reports that US drillers have added oil/gas rigs to their fleet for the fifth consecutive week.

Baker Hughes, an energy services firm, said in its widely-read report published on Friday that U.S. firms added oil and gas rigs this week for the 'fifth consecutive week' for the 'first time since February 2025.

The number of oil and gas drilling rigs, a good indicator of future production, increased by seven in the week ending May 22 to 558, its highest level since June 2025.

Baker Hughes reported that despite this week's increase in?rigs, the total count is still eight rigs lower, or 1%, than this time last.

Baker Hughes reported that oil rigs increased by 10 this week to 425. This is their highest level since July 2025. Gas rigs dropped by three -to 125 - and are at their lowest point since mid April. Other miscellaneous drilling rigs remained steady 'at 8'. The 10-oil rig build was the largest increase in a single week since February 2023.

Oil and gas rig counts will decline by 7%, 5%, and 20% between 2025 and 2023, as energy firms focus on increasing shareholder returns and paying off debt, rather than increasing production.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration's (EIA) projections show that crude production will rise from 13.6 million barrels per day in 2025 up to 13.7 millions barrels per days in 2026, after falling in 2023, 2024 and 2025.

The EIA predicted that gas output would increase from a record of 107.7 billion cubic feet per day in 2025 to a projected 110.6 bcfd by 2026, despite the fact that spot prices for the U.S. Henry Hub in Louisiana are expected to fall by around 1%. (Reporting and editing by David Gregorio, Scott DiSavino).

(source: Reuters)