REUTERS
World prices of crude oil were declining on Friday on a rising U.S. rig count in the United States, increasing fears of global oversupply in the market, according to trading data, Russian information agency Prime reported.
August futures for North Sea Brent blend fell by 0.14%, to $61.98 per barrel, while August futures for WTI were 0.4% down, to $56.7 per barrel.
On Thursday, energy services firm Baker Hughes Inc published a weekly update on the number of drilling rigs in the United States, the total number of which increased by three units, or 0.34%, to 862 units. At this, the number of oil drilling rigs in U.S. fields rose by 12, bringing the total figure to 640 (1.91% up), Prime wrote with reference to Baker Hughes report.
In addition, investors' sentiments on Friday were influenced by a report that China's securities regulator said it had opened an investigation into suspected stock market manipulation after a slump of more than 20% in Chinese stocks since mid-June.