US Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Ken Hyatt issued a new report earlier this week that predicts increases in global oil and gas prices will drive a revival of US oil and gas equipment exports during the next four years.

The new study from the International Trade Administration finds that a five-year downward trend that followed slumping oil prices should reverse itself in 2017, as new drilling opportunities in foreign deep water and shale formations become more economically viable.

“Now that oil prices are up, the industry is renewed and reinvigorated and new export opportunities are emerging as a result,” Hyatt said. “We expect a significant level of growth in this important sector, leading to additional U.S. exports and job creation.”

The United States is the world’s fourth largest exporter of oil and gas equipment with close to $18 billion in export sales, or 11 percent of the $166 billion global market. According to the report, the total world market for oil and gas equipment should increase to $205 billion in 2020, an increase of nearly 23.5 percent.

The report notes that US exporters must deal with regulatory and legal constraints “that threaten to inhibit greater global trade in some strategic markets.” US oil and gas equipment producers face stiff competition from companies in China, Germany, and South Korea. Canada remains the largest foreign export market for US oil and gas equipment manufacturers, followed by Mexico, the United Kingdom, Norway, Brazil, the Netherlands, and Nigeria.

This year’s report expanded its evaluation to include the top 151 countries for US oil and gas equipment exports (up from 74 countries in previous editions). It includes detailed market analysis of Canada, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, India, Kuwait, Singapore, and Guyana; and explores other potentially lucrative regions for US oil and gas equipment exporters, including the Caspian Sea (Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan) and West Africa (Senegal and Mauritania). It also provides an analysis of opportunities and barriers that could inhibit sales in each of these markets and a list of upcoming industry trade shows.

The International Trade Administration is a US Department of Commerce unit that helps US companies compete in the global marketplace. ITA has 2,200 employees assisting U.S. exporters in more than 100 US cities and 70 countries worldwide.