Trade Cases
US Rig Count Declines for Seventh Week, Canada Rises for Fifth
June 23, 2023
US rig counts dropped for the week ended June 23, while Canada’s count increased, according to the latest data from oilfield services company Baker Hughes. This marks the eighth consecutive week-over-week decline in the US and fifth consecutive weekly increase in Canada.
The total US rig count stood at 682 active rigs as of June 23, off five from the prior week. Active oil rigs in the US slipped by six rigs to 546 vs. a week earlier, while active gas rigs remained unchaged at 130 in the same comparison, and miscellaneous rigs increased by one to six rigs. The US rig count is down by 71 rigs when compared to a year earlier, with oil rigs down 48, gas rigs down 27, and miscellaneous up four, respectively.
For Canada, its rig count rose by 10 to 169 vs. the previous week, as oil rigs were up seven to 110, and gas rigs increased by three rigs to 59, respectively.
Compared with last year, Canada’s rig count is up by 15, with oil rigs up six, and gas rigs up nine, respectively.
The international rig count increased by 18 to 965 rigs in May vs. April, and is up by 148 rigs compared with the same month last year, Baker Hughes said.
The number of oil and gas rigs in operation is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of demand for oil country tubular goods (OCTG), a key end-market for steel sheet.
A rotary rig is one that rotates the drill pipe from the surface to either drill a new well or to sidetrack an existing one. Wells are drilled to explore for, develop, and produce oil or natural gas. The Baker Hughes Rotary Rig count includes only those rigs that are significant consumers of oilfield services and supplies.
Steel Market Update regularly publishes an in-depth “Energy Update” report covering oil and natural gas prices, detailed rig count data, and oil stock levels. That is available here for Premium members.
For a history of both the US and Canadian rig count, visit the Rig Count page on the Steel Market Update website here.
By Ethan Bernard, ethan@steelmarketupdate.com
Latest in Trade Cases
Nippon respects HR dumping decision, expects lower rate in next review
Nippon Steel says it respects the US Department of Commerce’s findings in administrative reviews despite the agency recently assigning the Japanese steelmaker a higher dumping margin.
CRU: Trump tariffs could stimulate steel demand
Now that the dust has settled from the US election, as have the immediate reactions in the equity, bond, and commodity markets, this is a prime opportunity to look at how a second Trump presidency might affect the US steel market.
Rebar import duties to continue for 5 more years
Import duties on rebar from a handful of countries will continue to be collected for at least another five years.
Leibowitz: Trump 2.0 signals Cold War 2.0 trade and China policies
China is one of the elephants in the room as the transition to Trump 2.0 continues. While the people and policies are still being formulated, it’s possible to detect a strategy for the new Trump administration. I think there are two imperative issues that the new administration needs to balance. The Trump strategy will, I believe, follow the following points. First, trade is one of the issues that got President Trump elected in 2016 and 2024—it nearly got him elected in 2020, save for the pandemic. If President Trump had won in 2020, I might be writing chronicles about the end of his eight years in the White House now instead of projecting what the next Trump administration would accomplish or break. Oh, well—that’s life. Trade will necessarily be a key feature of relations with China for the next four years.
Commerce says Nippon dumped steel in US in 2022-23
Commerce determined a significant dumping margin for hot-rolled steel imports from Japan's Nippon Steel.