Weekly US oil and gas rig count drops by 7

Houston-based drilling product provider Baker Hughes Inc. reported Friday that 1,132 rigs were exploring for oil and 856 for natural gas. Five were listed as miscellaneous. A year ago this week Baker Hughes reported 1,713 active rigs.

Of the major oil- and gas-producing states, North Dakota and Oklahoma each gained one rig.

Colorado and Texas each lost four rigs, Louisiana lost two, and New Mexico and Pennsylvania each lost one. Alaska, Arkansas, California, West Virginia and Wyoming were unchanged.

The rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. A low of 488 was recorded in 1999.