The price of crude oil fell by 4 per cent on Monday (today) over rising cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant in Europe and the United States.
Brent crude futures, the global benchmark, dropped by $3, or 4 per cent, to $70.58 a barrel by 11:00 GMT+1 while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell $3.1 or 4.4%, to $67 a barrel.
According to market analysts, the new cases of the pandemic could warrant new restrictions on businesses and hit fuel demand.