“The research team at Rystad Energy said on Tuesday that the downturn in the oilfield services business was the worst since the 1980s. Average service purchases fell by about 19% year over year, and Rystad expects the downturn to expand by 9% in 2016,” reports Paul Ausick for 24/7 Wall Street.
There are some positive catalysts, though. While there are still concerns that Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) will not be able to complete its acquisition of rival Baker Hughes (NYSE: BHI), August’s deal-making in the oil services space predictably touched-off speculation that more oil services firms are ripe takeover candidates. [More M&A for Oil Services ETFs]
“The researchers expect more cost cutting and layoffs, new alliances and collaborations, more mergers and acquisitions, and more pricing battles as service firms try to lock-in multiyear agreements with exploration and production companies,” adds 24/7 Wall Street.
Market Vectors Oil Service ETF
