NYMEX-U.S. crude prices rise after Saudi output cut
PERTH, Jan 11 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures rose in early Asian trading on Friday after news that the world's top oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, had cut back production in response to weak global demand.
FUNDAMENTALS
* U.S. crude for February delivery rose 18 cents to $94.00 a barrel by 0046 GMT.
* Brent crude for February settled at $111.89 per barrel on Thursday in London.
* A Reuters technical analysis on Friday showed that U.S. oil is expected to rise to $96.56 per barrel, as it may break above a resistance of $94.17.
* OPEC's top producer Saudi Arabia slashed oil production by 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 9 million bpd during the last two months of 2012, according to industry sources. Major customers for Saudi crude said the cuts were driven by lower demand.
* Oil prices also got a boost from Chinese trade data that showed strong export growth rebound in December, raising expectations of revived growth in the world's No. 2 economy that could drive more fuel demand.
* Flows of oil through Yemen's main crude export pipeline stopped after it was blown up by unknown attackers on Thursday morning, just 10 days after flows restarted following an earlier attack.
* Kinder Morgan Energy Partners has boosted the size of a proposed expansion of its Canadian oil pipeline by almost a third to $5.4 billion after signing up more customers for the project aimed at carrying growing volumes of oil sands-derived crude to the Pacific Coast, it said on Thursday.
MARKETS NEWS Asian shares rose on Friday amid an improving outlook for global economies and reduced anxiety over the euro zone's debt problems, while the yen slid on renewed expectations for aggressive monetary easing in Japan. Global markets rallied after China posted unexpectedly strong December trade data on Thursday, buoying hopes demand from the world's second-largest economy will rise.
* The U.S. dollar rose to as high as 89.04 yen, its highest since July 2010 and last stood at 88.90 yen, up 0.2 percent from late U.S. levels.
DATA/EVENTS The following data is expected on Friday: 0130 China CPI yy Dec 2012 0130 China PPI yy Dec 2012 0530 India Industrial Output yy Nov 2012 1330 U.S. International trade Nov 2012 1930 U.S. CFTC commitment of traders data Weekly
(Reporting by Rebekah Kebede; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)