The oil rig count in the U.S. showed decline this week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes data on Friday.
The number of oil rigs in the country fell by five for the week ending July 20, the data showed.
This brought the total number of oil rigs in the U.S. to 858 this week, from 863 the week before.
With the decline in oil rig count, crude prices showed slight gains on Friday.
International benchmark Brent crude rose to $72.97 per barrel at 1:15 p.m. EST (1715 GMT), while American benchmark West Texas Intermediate climbed to $68.39 a barrel at the same time.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed Wednesday that crude oil production in the country increased by 50,000 barrels per day (bpd) to reach 11 million bpd for the week ending July 13.
This marked the 25th weekly increase in crude oil production during the past 27 weeks in the U.S.
The U.S. crude oil production is expected to average 10.8 million bpd this year, and 11.8 million bpd next year, according to the EIA's Short-Term Energy Outlook for July.
By Ovunc Kutlu in New York
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr