World oil prices slumped by more than a fifth this year as deadly coronavirus savaged the world’s appetite for crude, despite a vaccine-driven upturn at the end of 2020.
Europe’s benchmark contract North Sea crude stood at $51.13 per barrel in mid-afternoon deals on Thursday. That was a hefty 22.5 percent lower than the same stage a year earlier.
The oil market had begun 2020 on the front foot, with prices rising as simmering tensions in the crude-rich Middle East region threatened to disrupt valuable supplies.
Oil spiked in early January, with Brent soaring as high as $71.75 after US President Donald Trump ordered the drone assassination of Iran’s top general Qasem Soleimani.
