FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- Crude futures edged lower on Friday after their 3.1% surge in the previous session, as traders locked in some of their recent gains. Crude oil for December delivery fell 26 cents, or 0.3%, to $79.61 a barrel in electronic trading on Globex. The contract had earlier risen to an intraday high of $80.27 a barrel. Oil prices surged 3.1% on Thursday after data showed that the U.S. economy expanded at a 3.5% annualized pace in the third quarter. The increase in gross domestic product was the first in a year and the strongest growth in two years. "There are still concerns over the strength of the recovery -- oil demand has been sluggish, illustrated by recent stock data, and oil producers have posted weak earnings reports as a result," said analysts at Action Economics. U.S. stock futures pointed to a slightly weaker start Friday following the rally in the prior session. See Indications. Investors are awaiting several economic reports due on Friday, including personal income for September, Chicago PMI for October and the final reading of the University of Michigan's consumer confidence for October. Also on Globex, November reformulated gasoline futures were unchanged at $2.02 a gallon, while November heating oil was flat at $2.06 a gallon. Both contracts will expire at the end of trading on Friday. December natural-gas futures fell 1 cent to $5.05 per million British thermal units.

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