Oil prices have reportedly dropped to the lowest since 1991 when the US launched invasion on Iraq after it invaded Kuwait.

Media reports show that Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, were down 22% – trading at $35.45 per barrel on Monday. It had been selling at $70 per barrel.

The fall in oil prices has been attributed to the outbreak of the coronavirus in and a disagreement within the Organization of Petroleum-Exporting Countries or OPEC.

The coronavirus pandemic has undermined energy demand worldwide, but especially in China, the number one importer of crude oil, using about 10 million barrels per day.

In addition, Saudi Arabia, the world’s top exporter, launched a price war at the weekend.

The move followed the collapse of an alliance between the OPEC cartel, led by Saudi Arabia, and Russia, according to CNN.

Over the weekend, Saudi Arabia decided to fight for greater market share by slashing the prices its preferred customers pay by between 4 and 7 dollars a barrel.

The kingdom is also reportedly planning to lift production to over 10 million barrels a day.

With South Sudan already suffering the consequences of oil advances, it is not clear how the Kiir administration will cope with these sharp drop in oil prices.

Oil producers in the United States and other nations brace for lower revenue, reduced investment and job losses as a global glut is compounded, reports New York Times.