Crude oil futures ended higher on Monday amid hopes the Omicron variant of the coronavirus will not any significantly impact global economic recovery. However, prices drifted lower earlier in the day, reacting to news about cancellation of over 1,300 flights by the US airlines over the weekend. According to reports, airlines across the world cancelled nearly 8,000 flights over the three-day Christmas weekend due to the spread of the Omicron variant. In the United States, the Omicron variant's daily cases have breached those of the Delta wave. Meanwhile, Britain, where Omicron is the dominant variant, has been reporting more than 100,000 cases in a single day. France has also reported cases above that figure for the first time.
Benchmark crude oil futures for February delivery rose $1.78 or 2.4 percent to settle at $75.57 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for February delivery surged $2.37 or 3.1 percent to settle at $78.16 a barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.