Oil prices head for weekly loss on Omicron variant uncertainty

Oil prices dipped on Friday, putting the market on track for a weekly loss, as surging cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant raised fears new curbs may hit fuel de-mand. Brent crude futures fell $1.48, or 1.97 per cent, to $73.54 a barrel at 8.40 pm (IST), while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dropped $1.45, or 2 per cent, to $70.93 a barrel.

Brent and WTI are both headed for a 1.4 per cent loss this week.

“Messages of caution and warnings of a worsening Covid wave are starting to ring louder with the approach of the year-end holiday season, dampening market sentiment,” said Vandana Hari, energy analyst at Vanda Insights. “Crude may remain in a holding pattern.”