Faster-than-expected economic growth in the United States helped the price of oil reverse early losses on Friday and climb back above $86 a barrel. By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark oil for December delivery was up 22 cents to $86.27 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 32 cents to finish at $86.05 a barrel in New York on Thursday. In London, Brent Crude was up 45 cents to $108.94 on the ICE Futures exchange. The U.S. Commerce Department said gross domestic product grew by an annual 2 per cent in the third quarter. That was in contrast to 1.3 per cent annual growth in the second quarter and analysts' expectations of a 1.8 per cent rise for July-September. Earlier in the session, the Nymex contract fell to $85, its lowest point since July, driven down by ample supplies and concerns about growth prospects in Europe. Analysts said the recent fall in oil prices can be partly attributed to ample supplies. Oil has dropped more than 7 per cent in the past week. The Energy Department said Thursday that U.S. oil supplies grew last week by 5.9 million barrels, or 1.6 per cent. At 375.1 million barrels, the nation's oil inventory is 11.1 per cent above year-ago levels. "Crude oil prices continue to remain under pressure, following the recent disappointing U.S. earnings results and the tentative economic conditions in Greece and Spain," said a report from Sucden Financial Research in London.

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