What is West Texas Intermediate WTI? Definition and Meaning

Other reference oil types include Leona, Tijuana, Alaska North Slope, Zueitina or Urals. West Texas Intermediate, more generally represented by the initials WTI, is also sometimes called Texas Light Sweet by certain brokers. It is actually a type of crude oil used by the economists as a standard value to determine the crude oil price as a commodity on the exchange markets, within the framework of futures contracts. This quotation is priced on the New York Mercantile Exchange, which is the principal world commodities exchange. WTI and Brent are the two major types of crude oil but they have certain specific differences.

There was once a time when buyers would primarily purchase crude oil on the spot market—that is, they’d pay the current price and accept delivery within a few weeks. However, after the oil crisis of the late 1970s, refiners and government buyers began looking for a way to minimize the risk of sudden price increases. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) controls most of the oil production and distribution, often dictating costs for not only oil suppliers but countries as well. Most nations factor oil prices into their budgets, so OPEC has been considered a leading geopolitical force. Since both types of oil are used as benchmarks, different countries will use them in different manners.

The IEA predicted in its February 2021 report that demand would recover 60% of its 2020 losses over the course of the year. While demand did rise again, more Covid lockdowns in China and a supply disruption caused by Russia’s war with Ukraine led the IEA to predict slightly slowed demand and higher prices as of May 2022. WTI refers to oil extracted from wells in the U.S. and sent via pipeline to Cushing, Oklahoma.

Brent Crude is the benchmark used for the light oil market in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, originating from oil fields in the North Sea between the Shetland Islands and Norway. West Texas Intermediate is the benchmark for the U.S. light oil market and is sourced from U.S. oil fields. WTI is the underlying commodity of the New York Mercantile Exchange’s (NYMEX) oil futures contract. With expanding support for exporting U.S. crude abroad, that meant less drilling in the future and less U.S. production on a daily basis.

Factors That Affect Benchmark Pricing

Brent is also tied to more worldwide oil markets, meaning that more factors are influencing its price. In 2005, hurricanes led to sharp rises in oil prices, as refineries and production facilities shut down for the duration of the weather events. The oil is considered to be very light, with a low sulfur content – considerably lighter and sweeter than Brent Crude, Dubai, or Oman. It is generally noted that the barrel price of crude WTI is slightly higher than that of the Brent or Dubai barrel.

1. The commodity of crude oil is by far the world’s most important energy source and the price of oil therefore plays an important role in industrial and economic development.
2. Theoretically, WTI crude should trade at a premium to Brent crude, given the quality, but this is not always the case.
3. Over the long term, a marker that sold at a premium to another index may suddenly become available at a discount.
4. Because of the dynamic nature of supply and demand, the value of each benchmark is continually changing.
5. Despite all the care taken during the writing of our articles there is still a slight risk of errors made in the information given.
6. Many futures are settled in cash, although some allow for physical delivery of the commodity.

There has been a trend, due to advancements in oil drilling and fracking, of West Texas Intermediate becoming cheaper than Brent Crude oil. This has been dubbed the American shale revolution, and the increased production led oil prices to fall from above $100 to below $50 from 2014 to 2015. Oil benchmarks describe where the commodity originates, which determines its use and allows investors to track the price of a specific oil type. Crude oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons found in liquid form underground and brought to the surface for refining into fuel and other products. Petroleum products are processed in refineries from crude oil and other liquids. Petroleum is a broad term that includes both crude oil and petroleum products.

Buyers catch a break – more homes on the market are seeing prices cut as sellers get impatient

In 2023, the U.S. imported about 8.51 million barrels per day of petroleum products Streaming stocks from 86 countries. The same year, it exported about 10.15 million barrels of petroleum to 173 countries and three U.S. territories. WTI and Brent, however, are both considered high-quality oils and therefore are the two most important oil benchmarks in the world.

Historical Prices for Oil (WTI)

Should the value of a certain crude marker skyrocket, the owner of a call option would have the right— though not the obligation—to buy a specific number of barrels at a pre-determined price. This Middle Eastern crude is a useful reference for oil of a slightly lower grade than WTI or Brent. A “basket” product consisting of crude from Dubai, Oman, and Upper Zakum, it’s somewhat heavier and has higher sulfur content, putting it in the “sour” category. The Dubai benchmark is the main reference for Persian Gulf oil delivered to the Asian market. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is a grade of crude oil and one of the main three benchmarks in oil pricing, along with Brent and Dubai Crude.

There are three major types of crude oil throughout the world that are used as oil reference prices according to their production zones. Therefore, for European oil, Brent from the North Sea acts as the reference, whereas for the OPEC countries, it is the Dubai crude which is referred to for the price determination. Because of these factors, buyers of crude oil—along with speculators—need an easy way to value the commodity based on its quality and location. When refiners purchase a Brent contract, they have a strong idea of how good the oil will be and where it will come from.

It is often priced one dollar more than the Brent and two dollars more than the Dubai. However, sometimes the WTI barrel is less expensive than the Brent barrel, but this difference has never historically exceeded 27 dollars. Brent is the reference for about 80% of the oil traded around the world, with WTI the dominant benchmark in the U.S. and Dubai influential in the Asian market.

The sulfur content of both Brent and WTI is well under 1%, making them both “sweet.” These types are also less dense (“lighter”) than many of the crude oils extracted elsewhere. Both of these characteristics make them easier to refine and more attractive to petroleum product producers. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is a trading classification of crude oil and one of the most commonly used benchmarks in oil prices.

The types of crude oil come from regions as diverse as Alaska North Lope, Arab Light or Zueitina in Libya. For the purposes of trading on futures exchanges in London or New York, however, reference oils are used. These are standardised products used to determine the prices for all other types. The reference oil traded most frequently and of major significance for the USA is West Texas Intermediate (WTI), while the most important in Asia is Dubai Fateh.

It originates mainly in the Permian Basin, the site of the nation’s highest-producing oil field. The oil travels via pipeline from Texas to refineries in the Midwest and the Gulf of Mexico. Erika Rasure is globally-recognized as a leading consumer economics subject matter expert, researcher, and educator. She is a financial therapist and transformational coach, with a special interest in helping women learn how to invest. West Texas Intermediate plays an important role in managing risk in the energy sector worldwide as how to use crypto wallets it has high liquidity, a large number of customers, and a lot of transparency.

What is ICE Brent Crude?

Speculators are also major players in the market, betting that changes to supply or demand will drive the price of certain crude products higher or lower. The price of oil is a major factor in the overall health of the energy sector and is one of the most heavily traded commodities as it is influenced by almost every global, macro event. In the United States, West Texas Intermediate is the preferred measure and pricing model. As of August 31, 2021, WTI was trading at around $68.50 per barrel, while Brent traded at $72.85. Since the shale boom in the U.S., which resulted in a production increase of WTI, the price of WTI has gone down and usually trades at a discount to Brent.

Today, much of the global trading takes place on the futures market, with each contract tied to a certain category of oil. Open a newspaper and there’s a good chance you’ll find a news story about the price of oil going in one direction or the other. As such, there are a few different classifications of crude oil, each that serves best online brokers for stocks in march 2021 as a different financial benchmark for the substance. A benchmark in the oil market serves as a reference price for buyers and sellers of crude oil. Oil benchmarks are frequently referred to in the media as the price of oil. Brent crude is traded internationally, so the delivery locations will vary by country.