Oil declined the most in nearly a week with the spread of new Covid-19 variants and tighter lockdown measures weighing on nascent hopes of a demand recovery. Futures in New York fell nearly 1% after choppy trading earlier on Thursday. The coronavirus variant identified in South Africa is reported to have reached the U.S. At the same time, worries over vaccine shortages in Europe continued to emerge, with Germany casting doubt on the effectiveness of AstraZeneca Plc’s shot for the elderly. “Concerns about the new Covid variants causing shutdowns in Europe and Asia, China especially,” are stoking worries over consumption, said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research. “The market was balanced and inventories were coming down,” but now “people are worried demand may weaken even further.” Oil has struggled to break far above $53 a barrel […]