While the earnings of oil field services like Diamond Offshore (NYSE:DO) and Noble (NYSE:NE), Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) and Weatherford (NYSE:WFT) could have been worse, overall they didn't fare too badly in light of the conditions they faced in the latest quarter.
The question is will they start to improve now that the Gulf oil moratorium has been lifted by the Obama administration.
The quick and easy answer to that is no they won't improve. At least as to how the Gulf limitations affect their businesses.
In reality, as far as effectively, the moratorium is really still in place, as the permitting process and new regulations will limit drilling and work in the Gulf for some time.
That's why Obama lifted the moratorium, as he could keep things as they are while permits and regulations force companies to take a lot of time to adjust and be approved.
So Obama can say he lifted the moratorium before the November elections, while keeping the affect of the moratorium on the companies who want to work in the Gulf.
Short-term the companies will still continue to struggle depending on their exposure to the Gulf.
The last quarter should be the same as this quarter for productivity in the Gulf of Mexico for the oil field services companies.
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