US shale producers slammed by oil price crash

Hard hit: Oil sector workers at the Permian basin outside of Midland, Texas. Production by US shale firms are seen to continue declining over the next year or so. — Bloomberg

HOUSTON: United States shale oil producers, whose weak returns in recent years had them out of favour with investors even before the coronavirus pandemic crushed oil prices and decimated production, are expected to post their worst second-quarter results since 2016.

Oil is down about 35% since January, as fuel demand tumbled during economic lockdowns.