LONDON—Oil prices dropped below $79 a barrel on Friday as a fresh surge in COVID-19 cases in Europe threatened to slow the economic recovery while investors also weighed a potential release of crude reserves by major economies to cool energy prices.
Brent crude was down $2.44, or 3 percent, at $78.80 a barrel by 1110 GMT, its lowest since early October, after earlier rising to as high as $82.24, extending volatility seen on Thursday.
