The Christmas holidays are over and news that could depress the oil market came in before the holidays, with a series of flight cancellations in the U.S. due to the rising COVID cases.
On Monday morning ET, oil prices are moving little with WTI crude first moving in a negative direction -0.51% to $73.41 per barrel.
The crude oil sort Brent is at $76.85 per barrel
United Airlines and Delta Airlines had negative news for some holiday folks heading into the Christmas holidays with several flights canceled due to the rising COVID cases in the U.S. This could have a negative impact on oil demand if the flight cancellations continue over the next few weeks.
The new year will also see the next OPEC+ meeting. Here it will be interesting to see how the further oil production policy will be due to uncertain prospects in the oil market. On the one hand, analysts predict further recovery for 2022, on the other hand, there are rows of negative news due to rising COVID figures.
However, there was also positive news indicating that the severity of the disease caused by the Omicron variant may be milder than some of the powers that be and the media would like to admit. Studies from the U.K. have shown a 50% less probability for a hospital visit. This is also in line with reports from the first country where Omicron was reported in South Africa. There, the percentage of people hospitalized is also said to be below. Additionally, there is news of the new anti-viral pills that have received emergency approval from the U.S. FDA to treat patients with COVID symptoms.