201212 1101 Global Markets & Energy Related News.

GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares rise, dollar pressured before Fed
TOKYO, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Asian shares rose as strong overnight performances in global equities and firmer economic sentiment in Germany buoyed sentiment, while the dollar was pressured ahead of the outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting later in the day.
"Although the view that the Fed will shift to outright Treasury purchases is now very widely shared by market participants, we do not believe it has been fully reflected into markets or in positioning," said Vassili Serebriakov, a strategist at BNP Paribas.

FOREX-Dollar on defensive as market eyes Fed stimulus
SYDNEY, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The dollar wallowed at three-month lows against the Australian currency and remained broadly under pressure as markets geared up for more stimulus from the Federal Reserve.
"Although the view that the Fed will shift to outright Treasury purchases is now very widely shared by market participants, we do not believe it has been fully reflected into markets or in positioning," said Vassili Serebriakov, a strategist at BNP Paribas.

Obama, Boehner talk and exchange new offers on 'fiscal cliff'
WASHINGTON, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Negotiations to avert the "fiscal cliff" ahead of a year-end deadline intensified as President Barack Obama and U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner spoke by phone on Tuesday after exchanging new proposals.
White House and congressional aides confirmed that Obama gave Boehner a revised offer in talks on Monday, and the Republican responded with a counterproposal on Tuesday.

Oil up on OPEC output decline, ahead of group's meeting
NEW YORK, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Oil futures rose modestly after OPEC said its members  pumped less oil last month and as a weaker U.S. currency helped to firm dollar-denominated commodity prices.
"We've seen some support from a weaker dollar," Marc Ground of Standard Bank commodities research said in a note.

U.S. oil production rising at record rate- EIA
NEW YORK Dec 11 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil production is rising at the fastest rate in history, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Tuesday, as the shale oil revolution pushes output toward a 20-year high next year.
U.S. production will rise by more than 13 percent to 6.4 million barrels per day in 2012, the EIA said in its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook. The 760,000 bpd rise should be the largest since commercial crude oil production began in the United States in the 1850s, the EIA said.

U.S. crude and oil products up sharply last week –API
NEW YORK, Dec 11 (Reuters) - U.S. crude and refined product stocks rose sharply last week, data from the American Petroleum Institute released on Tuesday showed, despite expectations crude inventories would decline.
Crude oil stockpiles rose by 4.3 million barrels in the week to Dec. 7, led by a build of 2.2 million barrels along the Gulf Coast and 1.2 million barrels in the Midwest, according to the API data.

OPEC set for easy oil deal, secretary-general dispute
VIENNA, Dec 11 (Reuters) - OPEC oil exporters on Tuesday were set to avoid a quarrel about how much crude they produce and argue instead about who should be the group's next secretary-general.
Oil prices are roughly where OPEC wants them - comfortably above $100 a barrel - but there is deadlock over who should be the new public face of the organization.  

Exxon sees North America as energy exporter by 2025
Dec 11 (Reuters) - Soaring oil and gas production will propel North America into becoming a net energy exporter by 2025, Exxon Mobil Corp said in its annual energy outlook.
More than half of the growth in unconventional natural gas supply over the next two decades will be in North America, supplies that will help reshape global markets, Exxon said.