Oil prices mixed in Asia

SINGAPORE, Nov 11 (AFP): Oil prices were mixed in Asian trade today as some traders took profits from a heady overnight rally sparked by a slew of positive economic data from the US, Europe and China, analysts said. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, rose 26 cents to $98.04 per barrel while Brent North Sea crude for December delivery shed eight cents to $113.63. Crude traders were making a quick buck after prices shot up in late US trade Thursday, said Victor Shum, senior principal of Purvin and Gertz energy consultants in Singapore. "It's simply profit-taking after the big comeback yesterday in the US," he told AFP. "It was a confluence of a lot of positive economic news in the US and Europe, and some data from China on growth in its oil imports last month," Shum added. The US had a rare reprieve from its economic woes on Thursday as government data showed the trade gap of the world's largest oil consumer narrowed in September and unemployment claims fell to a seven-month low last week.