Oil services company Baker Hughes Inc. has said that it will lay off about 7,000 workers as it prepares for a downturn.

Oil drilling in the United States will continue to fall in the first half of this year, and could even halve, according to major oil service companies looking to past slowdowns as a guide.

U.S. oil drillers pulled rigs this week as crude traded below $60 a barrel for the seventh straight day.

Schlumberger , the world’s largest oil services group, is cutting back its fleet for offshore geological surveys and taking an $800m writedown on the value of its ships, in the first significant cutback in the industry following the recent fall in crude prices.

Cheap takeover targets in bombed-out sectors of the market have driven M&A activity to seven-year highs in 2014, with oil and gas sector deals coming in at a rate not seen on records going back to the 1970s

Two of the biggest oilfield services companies, Halliburton and Baker Hughes, are discussing a merger that would help both companies fend off falling oil prices

Aker Solutions started trading on the Oslo stock exchange as a leaner and more streamlined company that will build on its strengths in the subsea and field design markets.

Rosneft Discovered a New Hydrocarbon Field in the Kara Sea

Kvaerner may seek partners, could see ownership changes

Baker Hughes and Aker Solutions Receive Regulatory Approvals for Subsea Production Alliance