Crude oil prices plummeted during the mid-morning trade in Asia Dec. 21, as concerns over a new highly infectious strain of the coronavirus raised fears of tightening lockdown and travel restrictions. At 11:35 am Singapore time (0335 GMT), the ICE Brent February contract fell $1.70/b (3.25%) from the Dec. 18 settle to $50.26/b, while the February NYMEX light sweet crude contract was down $1.54/b (3.13%) at $47.70/b. The fall in these markers has reversed an upward trend that saw both contracts rise by 4.58% and 5.33% on Dec. 18 to settle at $52.26/b and $49.25/b, respectively. Market analysts attributed the steep fall in oil prices in the morning to the emergence of a highly infectious variant of coronavirus called B.1.1.7. The strain emerged in the UK, with the country enacting tougher restrictions to […]