U.S. Fracking Services Sector Braces Itself for Lower Demand

Efficiency gains, flat capital budgets, and consolidation among U.S. oil and gas producers have started to affect oilfield services companies which expect weaker demand for their fleets and products and increasing pricing pressure this year. The total U.S. rig count is now at 576, according to the latest data from Baker Hughes, down by 45 from this same time last year. “Day rates are not great,” Jasen Gast, chief executive at Houston-based Oilfield Service Professionals (OSP), told Reuters. Even the biggest oilfield services firms say…