Vol. 233 No. 11
Crude oil prices have stabilized in the past few months, as political tensions in the Middle East offset fears of an economic downturn in Europe. Rising supplies from Iraq and Libya were not enough to make up for falling oil production in other parts of the region, particularly Iran, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia. In the U.S., crude production continued to rise, once again led by a surge in North Dakota’s Bakkan shale. Texas also contributed, with production standing 18% higher than this time last year, exceeding 2 million bopd. Despite this trend, the U.S. rig count fell for a second straight month to 1,859. Worldwide, there were 1,621 rigs running.
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