The U.S. natural gas patch dropped four rigs for the week ended Friday (March 22), including a notable reduction in drilling numbers for the gassy Haynesville Shale, according to the latest figures from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR).

The United States ended the period with 112 active natural gas-directed rigs, down from 162 in the year-earlier period. Oil-directed drilling declined by one unit week/week, leaving the combined domestic tally down five rigs to 624, versus 758 a year ago, according to BKR.

Four U.S. land rigs packed up shop overall for the period, with the Gulf of Mexico down one rig to 21. Declines included six horizontal rigs and one vertical rig, partly offset by a net increase of two directional rigs, according to the BKR numbers, which are based partly on data from...