Investing.com - Crude oil prices gained in Asia on Friday with investors looking ahead to rig count data in the U.S. after finding support in China trade data for demand prospects.
On The New York mercantile Exchange rose 0.15% to $53.09 a barrel. Brent crude on London's ICE rose 0.12% to $56.08 a barrel.
In China, the trade balance came in at a surplus of $40.82 billion for December with exports down 6.1% and imports up 3.1%. The data also showed record Chinese imports of oil at 8.56 million barrels per day (bpd) in December, with forecasts for further gains in 2017 by analysts.
Last week, Baker Hughes said the number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S increased by 4 to 529, the tenth straight weekly rise and a level not seen in more than a year.
Overnight, oil was up over 1% Thursday on reports Saudi Arabia has cut output by more than agreed.
Saudi Arabia agreed to cut output by 486,000 barrels a day to 10.058 million. That was part of a six-month accord on output cuts of 1.8 million barrels a day by OPEC and non-OPEC producers from the start of this year.
Al-Falih was also reportedly as saying Saudi Arabia would consider renewing that agreement beyond the six-month time frame.
"We’re going the extra mile to lead our colleagues within and outside of OPEC," Al-Falih reportedly said. Kuwait also has reportedly reduced production by more than it agreed.
Oil was underpinned by a slump in the dollar after a news conference by President-elect Donald Trump. A weaker dollar underpins demand for oil.
Trump failed to elaborate on plans for a fiscal stimulus package and tax cuts.