Crude Oil Lower; Handing Back Gains on Covid Caution By Investing.com – Investing.com

Crude Oil Lower; Handing Back Gains on Covid Caution By Investing.com – Investing.com

© Reuters.

By Peter Nurse   

Investing.com -- Oil prices fell Thursday, handing back some of the week’s strong gains with a degree of caution returning as governments undertake measures to slow the spread of the Omicron Covid variant.

By 9:25 AM ET (1425 GMT), futures traded 0.7% lower at $71.83 a barrel, while the contract fell 0.7% to $75.27. 

U.S. Gasoline RBOB Futures were down 0.1% at $2.1463 a gallon.

The U.K. government announced new restrictions in England on Wednesday, urging citizens to work from home and wear masks in public following a sharp growth in the number of Covid cases.

The U.K. Health Security Agency warned that the country could register 1 million cases by the end of this month given the steep trajectory of the spread of the Omicron variant.

Additionally, many countries in Europe have already placed mobility constraints on their populations, while in Asia, South Korea has registered record infections while cases remain elevated in Singapore and Australia.

Omicron now accounts for 46% of reported cases globally, according to Richard Mihigo, coordinator of the World Health Organization's Immunization and Vaccine Development Programme for Africa.

Adding to the bearish sentiment in the crude market