Oil rig count falls for sixth straight week (USO, WTI, OIL, VDE)

The US oil rig count fell by 12 this week to 498, according to driller Baker Hughes.

This tally is now at the lowest level since March 2010.

The total rig count fell 18 to 619, as six gas rigs were taken offline.

Last week, the oil rig count fell by five, and the combined count of oil and gas rigs declined by 13.

US oil output has remained buoyant even as rigs declined, since shrinking revenues from oil has forced drillers to produce more efficiently.

Following the rig-count data on Friday, West Texas Intermediate crude futures in New York were up by less than 1% and near $33.34 per barrel, after rallying to as high as $34.41 earlier in the day.

Here’s the latest chart:Andy Kiersz/Business Insider