2020.10.1610:42:00UTC+00Oil Prices Fall Amid Virus Surge

Oil prices fell about 1 percent on Friday as virus worries lingered and investors awaited more clarity on OPEC production stance.

Benchmark Brent crude for December delivery dropped over 1 percent to $42.72 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for November delivery were down 0.9 percent at $40.60.

The governments of European countries are each responding in their own way to the second wave of coronavirus.

London will enter a tighter Covid-19 lockdown from midnight today, while a nighttime curfew will take effect in some French cities starting Saturday.

The daily rise in infections surged past 7,000 for the first time ever in Germany, smashing the previous record set just the day before.

Despite lingering concerns over demand recovery, OPEC and its allies plan to taper the ongoing oil production cuts as of January 2021, as initially agreed.

Keeping market stability is the top priority of the OPEC+ agreement, but "We have no illusions this recovery will take a long time," OPEC's Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said on the Energy Intelligence Forum on Thursday.

There is an OPEC+ meeting scheduled for Nov. 30 to Dec. 1 to set policy.