Spot prices for Brent, WTI and Dubai Fateh surged 18%, 15% and 17%, respectively, in December after Saudi Arabia announced plans to reduce output by 1 MMbopd in February and March. The unexpected preemptive action was deemed necessary to protect the fledgling oil price recovery from a resurgence of Covid-19. The reduction came just as the IEA slashed its demand forecast for the first quarter as countries lock down to contain new virus outbreaks. U.S. drilling activity continued to recover, averaging 339 units in December, an 9% gain compared to the 311 reported in November. The majority of the increases were in Texas and New Mexico, which added 11 and 9 rigs, respectively, to average 155 and 63 in December. International activity also showed improvement, averaging 764 rigs in November, 28 more than in October.
- Management issues- Dallas Fed: Activity sees modest growth; outlook improves, but cost increases continue (October 2023)
- Industry at a glance (June 2023)
- Industry at a glance (May 2023)
- Management issues- Dallas Fed: Oil and gas expansion stalls amid surging costs and worsening outlooks (May 2023)
- Executive viewpoint (April 2023)
- Global offshore market is on the upswing (April 2023)
