Baker Hughes: 2016 Rig Count Could Fall 30 pct

Oilfield services provider Baker Hughes Inc, which is being acquired by larger rival Halliburton Inc, said it expected global rig count to decline by as much as 30 percent in 2016, as the slump in oil prices shows no signs of abating.

A more than 70 percent slide in global crude prices since June 2014 has forced oil producers to lay down rigs and scale back spending.

The worldwide rig count more than halved in 2015, meaning 2016 will be the second straight year of reduced drilling activity.

Chief Executive Martin Craighead said "customers' challenges of maximizing production, lowering their overall costs, and protecting cash flows were now more acute."

Baker Hughes publishes the closely-watch North American rig count every week, and the international rig count on a monthly basis.

Net loss attributable to Baker Hughes was $1.03 billion, or $2.35 per share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with a profit of $663 million, or $1.52 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding a $1.25 billion impairment charge in the quarter, loss was 21 cents per share, much bigger than the average analyst estimate of 10 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue nearly halved to $3.39 billion, missing Wall Street expectations of $3.47 billion.

Baker Hughes shares closed at $40.83 on Wednesday.

The stock is down 31 percent since the deal with Halliburton was announced on Nov. 17, 2014. Halliburton's shares have lost 47 percent during the same period.

Reporting by Swetha Gopinath