By Dhirendra Tripathi

Investing.com – Uber stock (NYSE:) fell 6.3% on Friday as the emergence of a new variant of coronavirus in South Africa led to fears of fresh curbs on travel in countries.

People would hesitate to use ride-hailing services if the virus is spread.

Austria and Slovakia went into lockdowns last week and Germany, Europe’s largest economy is considering one, though the Covid-19 surge in those countries isn’t linked to the new variant.

Today, the U.K. suspended all flights from and to six African countries while the Europe Commission proposed new rules for travel to limit the spread of the disease.

Feeding into the negative sentiment for Uber stock was the company’s decision to halt operations in Brussels with effect from today.

This decision comes following Wednesday’s ruling by a Brussels court that the 2015 ban on taxi service providers from private individuals also applies to professional drivers.

Uber claimed that this decision will impact approximately 2000 drivers. The Uber team urged the Belgian government for swift changes to taxi law.

Today’s fall in the price comes even before the stock could recover from the blows of the last lockdown.