US Mining and Energy Extraction Sector NAICS 21

Jul 14, 2025 - More Firms Plan to Trim Capex in 2026

• According to the latest quarterly Dallas Fed Energy Survey, more than a quarter (27%) of oil-and-gas companies active in Texas and adjacent territories plan to cut back on capital spending in 2026 compared to nearly 40% who continue to expect spending on capex to rise next year. The survey of business leaders at exploration and development companies and oilfield services firms found the drop to be concentrated among large producers, with 75% saying they now expect to drill fewer wells this year than planned to at the start of 2025. By contrast, only 34% of leaders from smaller companies said they’ve scaled back their plans. The share of business leaders surveyed in the second-quarter who said they expect to trim capex in the next year was the highest since late 2023. Leaders disagree with the Trump administration regarding a viable price per barrel for West Texas Intermediate crude oil.
• After posting a modest increase this year, US oil production is expected to decline in 2026, the first year-on-year decrease in roughly a decade (excluding 2020), The Wall Street Journal reports. Drillers are hitting the brakes on production in response to low crude oil prices and pressure to return cash to shareholders, according to WSJ. Diamondback Energy, one the nation’s largest producers, recently told investors that it would spend less this year and lower rig counts. Low crude prices due to falling demand and OPEC+’s decision to pump more oil are roiling the US oil patch, most notably the oil-rich Permian Basin. Oil prices have fallen since President Trump’s early April tariff offensive – far below the $85 per barrel price needed to encourage companies to drill, the CEO of Permian driller Ring Energy told WSJ. In June, oil prices surged to $74 per barrel after Israel attacked Iranian nuclear sites.

• Cuts to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, threaten miners’ safety just as the Trump administration is seeking to expand mining in the US, NPR reports. The president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) condemned the cuts, stating “This is not just an attack on jobs. This is an attack on the very foundation of worker safety in the United States of America.” The UMWA president said the dismantling of the Respiratory Disease Division at NIOSH eliminates the nation’s leading defense against black lung disease and other respiratory illnesses that afflict miners. In March, President Trump signed an executive order fast tracking permitting and expanding mining in the US. The cuts at NIOSH followed soon after. More mining means more miners to protect. However, miners' protections are being stripped away, says the UMWA.
• The producer price Index for all mining industries, which measures prices producers receive for their products, fell 2.6% in May compared to a year ago, after rising 5.9% in the previous May-versus-May annual comparison, according to the latest data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment by mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction firms was flat year over year in May and is down 23% over the past decade, BLS data show. Meanwhile, the average industry wage rose 3.4% year over year in April to $38.13 per hour, down slightly from its record high in February.