Oil prices mixed after positive economic data

January 18, 2012 | 09:01

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Oil prices climbed Tuesday on positive US and Chinese economic data and after Saudi Arabia said it would like to keep prices high at around $100 a barrel, analysts said.

New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate crude for delivery in February, jumped $2.01 to close at $100.71 a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for March settled 19 cents higher at $111.53 in London.

The oil market reacted to news that China's economy grew by 8.9 per cent in the last quarter of 2011, which although slower than the previous three months was better than the 8.6 per cent expected.

China is the biggest consumer of energy and the second-largest economy in the world.

Prices also rose in New York after Saudi Arabia said it wanted "to keep the price of oil at $100 per barrel or above to finance its increasing domestic expenditure," according to Westhouse Securities analyst Peter Bassett.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi gave the figure in an interview with CNN on Monday, in which he added that the kingdom's output could be boosted by around 2.6 million barrels a day to offset a potential cut in Iranian exports.

But Iran on Tuesday warned Saudi Arabia to reconsider its vow to make up for any shortfall, saying Riyadh's pledge to step into the market was unfriendly.

The United States and the European Union are ramping up sanctions on Iran aimed at sharply reducing Iran's oil exports and income in the hope of halting its alleged development of atomic weapons.

AFP

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