Oil prices rise amid expectations of improvement in Chinese industrial production
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Oil prices rose moderately Friday, clawing back some of the ground lost during a sharp sell-off the day before, as traders awaited a slew of economic data from China.
Benchmark oil for January delivery was up 29 cents to $86.55 per barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.62, or 1.8 percent, to finish at $86.26 per barrel in New York.
Prices moved higher ahead of the anticipated release of inflation, retail sales and factory output data from China on Sunday.
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Analysts at Gao Hua Securities Co. in Beijing said they expect industrial production growth for November to rise to 10 percent from a year earlier, up from 9.6 percent in October.
Signs of a production uptick in the world's No. 2 economy — often referred to as the world's factory because of its colossal manufacturing output — usually help support energy prices, since China consumes huge amounts of energy to fuel its economy.
On Thursday, the price of oil fell after the European Central Bank predicted a bleak year ahead for the region's economy but stopped short of offering new measures to boost growth
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The ECB left its key interest rate unchanged at a record low, and the bank cut its 2013 economic forecast for the region to negative from positive.
The 17 countries that use the euro currency are in a recession after a massive debt crisis followed by government spending cuts and tax hikes that have hurt growth.
Brent crude, which is used to price international varieties of oil, rose 20 cents to $107.23 per barrel in London.
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In other energy futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange:
— Heating oil rose 0.3 cent to $2.947 per gallon.
— Wholesale gasoline rose 0.3 cent to $2.60 per gallon.
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— Natural gas rose 0.4 cent to $3.67 per 1,000 cubic feet.