Lower spending plans
The uncertainty about drilling and completions activity in North America caused oilfield services companies to lower their capital spending plans for 2019.
Lower demand for completions activity in the fourth quarter of 2018 put pricing pressure on Halliburton’s (HAL) offerings. The company expects the pressure to continue in the current quarter. In response, Halliburton expects to spend 20% less on capital projects in 2019 than it did in 2018.
Schlumberger’s (SLB) expected capital expenditure of $1.6 billion in 2019 is ~25% lower than its spending in 2018.