Top oil services providers Halliburton and Schlumberger are bracing for North America onshore activity to worsen further in the fourth quarter and are stacking equipment as a result, writes Kathrine Schmidt.

Halliburton chief executive Jeff Miller told analysts that the company expects further decreases in both rig count and completions activity after declines already registered in the third quarter.

“While historically the third quarter used to be the busiest in terms of hydraulic fracturing activity in the US, stage counts declined every month this quarter," Miller said.