US Oil Bosses See Spending Up Despite Lower Prices, Survey Shows

(Bloomberg) -- Executives at US shale companies plan to increase spending this year despite giving a lower view on oil prices in the latest energy survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.

Most executives at 134 oil and gas firms from across the Southwest expect capital spending to increase compared with 2024, according to the bank’s survey released Thursday. But the average response for West Texas Intermediate prices that companies are using to plan their budgets fell to $68 a barrel, seen down 4% from last year. The survey reflected optimism for industry regulations after Donald Trump’s presidential election win.

“The change in political landscape is helpful insofar as regulations, but it appears that crude oil prices are headed down,” the bank quoted in its report, citing an unidentified executive. “The new administration should have a positive effect on the economy, thus lifting the oil industry,” another respondent said, according to the report.

The Dallas Fed’s quarterly surveys are widely read for the anonymous comments that offer an unfiltered view on a range of topics impacting the oil industry. The bank’s region encompasses Texas, northern Louisiana and southern New Mexico.

“There is more optimism looking at first quarter 2025 than first quarter 2024,” another executive said in the survey. “The election results will be good for activity, even if it’s just because operators and service companies have a clear direction for planning.”