Oilfield services provider Baker Hughes Inc, which is being acquired by larger rival Halliburton Inc, said it expects unfavorable market conditions to persist for the rest of the year.

The forecast comes days after industry leader Schlumberger Ltd said it expects an uptick in demand in North America later this year.

Halliburton also said on Monday that it expects an uptick in activity later this year, though it does not expect a "meaningful recovery" until 2016.

Oilfield service companies have seen demand decline due to a steep fall in global crude prices since June last year.

"In North America, we don't anticipate activity to increase while commodity prices remain depressed," Baker Hughes Chief Executive Martin Craighead said in a statement on Tuesday.

Houston-based Baker Hughes, which previously said it would cut about 10,500 jobs, or 17 percent of its global workforce, has also closed and consolidated about 140 facilities worldwide.

Excluding a one-time restructuring charge, the company posted a loss of 14 cents per share, matching analysts' average estimate, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue from North America, which accounted for nearly 38 percent of the company's total revenue, fell 47 percent to $1.50 billion in the second quarter ended June 30.

The net loss attributable to Baker Hughes was $188 million, or 43 cents per share, compared with a profit of $353 million, or 80 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue dropped 33 percent to $3.97 billion, but beat the average analyst estimate of $3.78 billion.

Up to Monday's close of $59.46, Baker Hughes' stock had risen nearly 17 percent since Nov. 13, when news of a possible deal first emerged.

Source: uk.reuters.com

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