UPDATE 1-Global rig count up slightly in June - Baker Hughes

* Global June rig count up marginally by 4 to 1,987

* U.S. rig count down by 23 from May to 895

* Canadian rig count up for the first time in 2009

July 8 (Reuters) - The number of drilling rigs operating globally in June rose marginally for the first time this year, according to a closely watched data from Baker Hughes Inc (BHI.N).

The global rig count rose to 1,987 in June, from 1,983 in May signaling a slight recovery in energy demand, particularly in Canada.

Canada's rig count for June rose to 125, up 53 from 72 in May.

However, after it rose for the first time this year in May, the international rig count for June dropped by 26 to 967, from 993 counted in May.

U.S. rig count for June was 895, down 23 from 918 in May.

Rig count in the U.S. has been hit particularly hard so far because many wells are drilled with equipment on shorter contracts and by smaller operators that respond more quickly to market signals in order to manage their cash and risk.

But over the last few weeks analyst have been turning bullish on the drillers and oilfield services providers.

Morgan Stanley recently raised its price targets on a slew of large U.S. oilfield services companies in May, expecting the stocks to perform well on improved fundamentals.

The brokerage had raised price targets on Weatherford International (WFT.N), Halliburton Co (HAL.N), Schlumberger Ltd (SLB.N), Cameron International (CAM.N), Smith International (SII.N), Baker Hughes (BHI.N) and Nabors Industries (NBR.N), among others. [ID:nBNG489031] For the alerts, double-click [ID:nWNAB5173] (Reporting by Shradhha Sharma in Bangalore, Editing by Dinesh Nair)