Crude oil prices have fallen heavily after a new variant of the COVID-19 virus was identified in South Africa and Botswana. The news has already triggered a travel ban from the UK on six countries in Southern Africa, triggering fears that new travel restrictions and lockdowns could trigger a loss of oil demand. This development comes on the back of the US announcement on Wednesday that it was releasing 50 million barrels from its strategic reserves to bring down prices. It also affirms the OPEC + argument that it could not go beyond a 400,000 barrels per day increase because downside risks to oil prices remained. The ... (full story)