Crude oil prices find support, volatility persists

1215 GMT: Crude oil futures recovered some of the previous day's losses during London trading Dec. 1 as the Brent contract rolled over to February. However, heightened volatility remained the key theme amid omicron-related developments and before the OPEC+ meeting Dec. 2.

At 1215 GMT Dec. 1, ICE February Brent crude futures was up $3.25/b from the previous settlement at $72.48/b while the NYMEX January WTI futures contract was up $2.99/b at $69.17/b.

Most market participants expected the OPEC+ to pause the planned increase in supply levels at its meeting Dec. 2.

There has so far been limited information regarding the impact of the new omicron variant on the energy markets though volatility has persisted.

At the same time, the US has not communicated any changes regarding its decision to release strategic reserves in the following months that would add more volumes to current supply levels.

"The most important point is production levels and what will OPEC+ decide tomorrow, the US reserves release is only a temporary measure, after all," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.

The World Health Organization has announced that several weeks will be required to obtain more data on the omicron variant to provide a clearer picture on its implications. In the meantime, several countries have already imposed new travel restrictions.

"It is as clear as mud how oil prices will develop in the near term, it looks like we have found a resistance level for now, but the only certainty is volatility will persist," Ole added.

The OVX CBOE crude oil volatility index was trading 18.77% higher than the previous close at 75.23% implied forward volatility.

Equities and other asset classes recovered most of their previous day's losses, with the FTSE 100 up 1.45% at $7,161.83 on Dec. 1.