European stocks on Friday suffered the sharpest fall since June

European stocks on Friday suffered the sharpest fall since June. They came under increased pressure due to concerns about the economic impact of a new coronavirus mutation found in South Africa. Concerns about the new coronavirus variant also had a more pronounced effect on oil prices. The pan-European stock index STOXX Europe 600 depreciated 3.67 percent and closed at 464.05 points. "This new variant of the virus comes at the worst possible time, because Europe and some northern parts of the United States are in a tense situation due to the already high number of new cases and hospitalizations," said analyst Peter Garnry of Saxo Bank. The main index of German DAX shares depreciated 4.15 percent to 15,257.04 points. The French CAC 40 index fell 4.75 percent to 6,739.73 points, while the London Stock Exchange FTSE 100 index then fell 3.64 percent to 7044.03. US stocks also weakened significantly. The Dow Jones index, which includes shares of 30 leading US companies, lost 2.53 percent and closed at 34,899.34 points, recording the biggest drop last October. Shares of companies in the tourism, banking and energy sectors lost a lot. The broader S&P 500 fell 2.27 percent to 4,594.62 points, while the Nasdaq Composite Index, which includes many high-tech companies, lost 2.23 percent to 15,491.66 points. Oil prices also fell, falling to their lowest level in more than two months. The new coronavirus variant has raised concerns about weakening demand as supply increases. Light U.S. crude fell 11.8 percent to $ 69.15 a barrel. It's the worst day for it since April 2020. Brent North Sea crude, whose price is an international reference price, fell by 10.5 percent to $ 73.56 per barrel. The cnbc.com portal informs about it. Concerns about declining demand arose when US President Joe Biden's administration announced plans to release 50 million barrels of oil from US strategic reserves. China, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom are also planning to release some of their reserves. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is scheduled to meet on December 2 to discuss mining policy in January and beyond. The cartel is slowly lifting the mining restrictions agreed in April 2020. Meanwhile, OPEC is increasing its daily production by 400,000 barrels each month.