US Rig Count Tumbles To Annual Decline; Jobs & Production Next?

Baker Hughes just reported that the total number of active drilling rigs in the US tumbled by 11 last week to 720 - down 8 rigs on a YoY basis...

Source: Bloomberg

This is the first annual decline since April 2021.

The first question we have is simple - with rigs now down almost 10% from the February highs - will Oil & Gas Extraction Industry jobs start to decline?

Source: Bloomberg

The decline in the number of rigs was entirely attributed to oil rigs, which fell by 11 this week to 575. Gas rigs stayed the same at 141. Miscellaneous rigs stayed the same at 4.

Source: Bloomberg

That drop in oil rigs suggests US crude production is due to decline, which should, all things being equal, imply higher prices (but for now it is not).