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Energy services company Baker Hughes said on Thursday that U.S. energy companies increased the number of oil and natural gas rigs this week, marking the first increase in three weeks. As an early indicator of future production, the number of oil and natural gas rigs rose by 5 to 548 in the week ending April 2. Baker Hughes said that despite the increase in rigs this week, the total number of rigs was still 42 fewer than the same period last year, a decrease of 7.1%. Baker Hughes noted that the number of oil rigs increased by 2 to 411 this week, while natural gas rigs increased by 3 to 130. Due to the decline in U.S. oil prices, energy companies have focused more on boosting shareholder returns and paying down debt rather than increasing production, resulting in a decline of about 7% in oil and natural gas rigs in 2025, a 5% decline in 2024, and a 20% decline in 2023.

According to Odaily, spot Brent crude oil (the North Sea physical crude delivery benchmark) has surpassed $140 per barrel, marking the highest level since 2008. According to S&P Global, the price of Brent crude oil delivered in the North Sea has reached $141.37 per barrel, the highest since 2008. The Strait of Hormuz has now been closed for over a month, resulting in what the International Energy Agency calls the largest supply disruption in the history of the oil market. This strait accounts for about one-fifth of global oil shipments, and refineries have spent the past few weeks scrambling to secure any oil they can obtain. Spot Brent crude oil was just below $128 per barrel a day ago, and the current price has already exceeded the peak reached during the Russia-Ukraine crisis in 2022. While benchmark Brent crude oil futures prices remain below the levels of that period, spot Brent crude oil prices reflect deals made for delivery on a much shorter timeframe. (Golden Ten Data)

The MarketVectorTM Digital Assets 100 Mid Cap Index dropped by 3.49%, closing at 2,697.89 points. The MarketVector Digital Assets 100 Index fell by 2.88%, closing at 13,481.93 points. Currently, Solana is down 5.26%, Dogecoin is down 2.77%, and XRP is down 3.35%. Bitcoin fell by 1.50%, currently at $67,134.80; Ethereum fell by 3.41%, currently at $2,065.48.