The number of active oil and gas drilling rigs in the U.S. at the end of last week rose for the third time in the last four weeks. Drilling activity remained strong amid relatively high oil prices. The oil services company Baker Hughes said Friday.

According to Baker Hughes, the number of active oil and gas rigs, a leading indicator of production, rose by 2 units to 770 in the week Oct. 29-Nov. 4.

That puts the number of active oil and gas rigs at 220, or 40%, higher than last year.

The number of oil rigs rose by 3 units to 613 during the week, the highest level since March 2020. The number of gas rigs decreased by 1 unit to 155. This is the lowest since July 2022.