03:51 PM EDT, 06/28/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The number of oil rigs in the US fell by six for the week ended June 28, according to data compiled by energy services company Baker Hughes ( BKR ) .

The weekly count for oil declined to 479 from 485 a week earlier. The tally for gas fell by one to 97, while miscellaneous rigs were unchanged at five. A year earlier, the US had 545 oil, 124 gas and five miscellaneous rigs in operation, company data showed.

Overall, 581 rigs were operating in the US this week, down from 674 a year earlier. Among US states, top producer Texas lost five rigs to 277, while the count in Oklahoma and New Mexico fell by one each.

Across North America, oil-and-gas equipment rose by three on a weekly basis to 757, compared with 841 at the same point last year. The count in Canada jumped by 10 to 176 rigs, led mainly by oil.

West Texas Intermediate crude was down 0.4% at $81.45 per barrel in Friday late-afternoon trade, on course for the first drop in three days.

"From a relatively weak start to the year amid concerns about Chinese demand and the negative impact of high funding costs following the most aggressive rate-hiking campaign by the US Federal Reserve in decades, the crude oil market has since moved higher, with most of the major movements being driven by the ebb and flow of a geopolitical risk premium, and with that the buying and selling from hedge funds looking for momentum," Saxo Bank Head of Commodity Strategy Ole Hansen said in a Friday note.

The firm said it has a "constructive view" on demand into the third quarter amid robust summer demand for fuel towards mobility and cooling.

Government data showed Wednesday that commercial crude stockpiles in the US increased by 3.6 million barrels to 460.7 million barrels through the week ended June 21. The consensus estimate on Bloomberg was for a draw of 2.8 million barrels.

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