Oil prices drop by 4%... and Brent records 78.41 dollars... and 74.08 dollars for US crude

 Today, Friday, oil prices witnessed a decline of 4%, and the price reached 78.41 dollars per barrel for the futures contracts for the international standard Brent, and the US West Texas Intermediate crude futures contracts recorded 74.08 dollars per barrel.
 
International media reports stated that oil prices in global markets continued to decline by 4% today, Friday, as a result of fears of the impact of the outbreak of a new strain of the Corona virus, which led to an increase in the possibilities of global oil supply inflation during the first quarter of 2022, after The release of crude reserves in the United States of America and a number of other countries.
 
On Thursday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that America was trying to persuade it to increase oil production.
 
According to Al-Arabiya, the Russian Foreign Ministry added that America wants to pump more Russian oil to lower prices.
 
The Russian Foreign Ministry added that Washington is seeking to increase oil production to serve its interests and impede the export of Russian gas to Europe.
 
The British government also announced its intention to put 1.5 million barrels of its reserve stock of oil on the market, as part of an international effort led by the United States to reduce fuel prices and solve the shortage of fuel supplies, according to the Middle East News Agency.
 
A government spokesman said that the United Kingdom will make supplies available to oil companies that need to buy it in the coming weeks, according to what was quoted by the British newspaper “The Telegraph”, which indicated that the remaining strategic oil reserves after the offering would cover the International Energy Agency’s demand for more than 90 days.
 
The Japanese government had decided to sell part of the oil reserves from the strategic stockpile in order to stabilize crude prices.
 
According to Sputnik, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters, "We know that the American president announced the sale of oil so far, we have cooperated with the United States together to achieve stability in the global oil market."
 
And the American newspaper, The New York Times, said that, yesterday, Thursday, South Africa’s announcement of the detection of a new worrying mutation of the Corona virus, which scientists indicated is a great leap in development, has prompted many countries to impose travel restrictions from the region.
 
Within hours, Britain, Israel and Singapore announced restrictions on travelers from South Africa and several neighboring countries, due to the threat posed by the new mutant.
 
On Friday morning, markets in Japan were pulled back by the discovery, while officials in Australia and New Zealand said they were watching the new mutation closely.