Crude oil futures ended lower on Friday amid the dollar's strength and worries about the outlook for energy demand. Fears of the U.S. falling into a recession and the impasse in debt ceiling talks boosted dollar's safe-haven appeal and hurt oil prices. Meanwhile, according to a report from Baker Hughes, the total number of total active drilling rigs in the United States fell by 17 this week after falling by 7 last week. It is the largest single-week drop in the number of oil and gas rigs in the United States since June 2020. The total rig count fell to 731 this week, just 17 rigs higher than the rig count this time in 2022.
Benchmark crude oil futures for June delivery fell $0.83 or about 1.2 percent to settle at $70.04 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for July delivery declined $0.72 or 0.95 percent to settle at $74.26 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.