Compared to today’s price of $76.78 per barrel, the price is up by 9.06%. Exactly one month ago, Brent crude oil’s spot price was at $76.14 per barrel. Compared to today’s price of https://bigbostrade.com/ $81.94 per barrel, the price is up 7.62%. From time to time new oil resources come online — like Canadian oil sands or US crude oil from oil shale — these add to the global supply.

  1. Global events, supply and demand factors, and market sentiment can cause prices to converge or diverge between the two benchmarks.
  2. The materials provided on this Web site are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to provide tax, legal, or investment advice.
  3. This guide explains exactly what the oil spot price represents and what factors determine the constantly moving live price.
  4. Read on to learn more about the live crude oil price you see historically, or on active trading days.

Today’s WTI crude oil spot price of $76.78 per barrel is up 2.35% compared to one week ago at $75.02 per barrel. 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. Brent is also tied to more worldwide oil markets and serves as an international benchmark, meaning that more factors are influencing its price. Furthermore, transporting WTI overseas to Brent crude’s market could come at a cost that would make WTI unable to compete with Brent crude in terms of pricing.

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WTI and Brent oil futures are primarily traded on major futures exchanges, such as the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) for WTI and the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) for Brent. These exchanges offer electronic trading platforms where traders can execute transactions and manage their positions. However, the global pool of oil and the ease with which oil moves around the world levels some of these price pressures, and no one oil producer to completely dominate the world market. In Brent crude oil’s instance, these reserves are under the seafloor, while WTI crude oil is extracted from reserves located under dry land.

Marko has been working on the road for over 5 years, and is currently based in Europe. Alongside writing and editing, Marko works on projects related to online technology and digital marketing. “While escalation cannot be written off, it remains unlikely in our view, as main parties in the conflict have strong incentives to avoid direct confrontation, and so far they have acted accordingly,” Kaneva wrote. “The ramifications of a possible collapse in the China’s property sector makes moot any authority stimulus and will have very negative global shockwaves,” John Evans with the oil broker PVM wrote in a note.

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It, along with Brent Spot Price, is one of the major benchmarks used in pricing oil. WTI in particular is useful for pricing any oil produce in the Americas. One of the most notable times for the WTI Crude Oil Spot Price was in 2008 when prices for WTI Crude reached as high as $145.31/barrel because of large cuts in production.

Each contract represents a specific quantity (typically 1,000 barrels) of oil to be delivered at a specified future date. Traders can buy or sell these contracts, aiming to profit from highest net worth company price fluctuations. The futures price reflects market expectations for the future value of oil. The current price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil today is $76.56 per barrel.

The Specifics of Oil Futures

WTI is not the most commonly used benchmark globally, that honor goes to Brent, where two-thirds of oil contracts globally use Brent as a benchmark. Both, however, are considered high-quality oils and are therefore the two most important oil benchmarks in the world. As mentioned, WTI has a sulfur content between 0.24% and 0.34%, whereas Brent has a sulfur content between 0.35% to 0.40%.

The global economy is facing significant challenges due to energy constraints, increasing wealth disparity, and rising inflation, which are collectively leading it towards a potential downturn. January saw significant market volatility, with initial investor optimism dampened by hawkish central banks and geopolitical tensions, impacting various sectors, including steel, oil, and precious metals. Roger Wohlner is an experienced financial writer, ghostwriter, and advisor with 20 years of experience in the industry.

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Oil futures are financial contracts that allow participants to buy or sell a specific quantity of oil at a predetermined price on a future date. These contracts serve as an agreement between the buyer and the seller to facilitate the delivery of oil or the cash settlement of the contract at the expiration date. Read on to learn more about the live crude oil price you see historically, or on active trading days. As oil prices remain at currently elevated levels, and if they rise even higher from here, every oil producer on the planet will produce more oil, including OPEC+ and all of its members. Oil prices will head lower, and WTI prices will likely find their way towards $50 in 2024. “The spreading conflict in the Middle East remains the most visible and growing risk for energy markets,” Natasha Kaneva, head of global commodities research at JPMorgan, told clients in a research note Tuesday.

WTI futures contracts are typically settled through physical delivery. If a trader holds a contract until expiration and does not offset or roll over the position, they must provide or take delivery of the actual crude oil. The final settlement price is determined by the average of daily spot prices over a specific period, and cash is exchanged based on the price difference between the futures contract and the spot price. Brent crude oil trades six days a week, so based on which day you’re looking at crude oil spot prices, you may be getting the last recorded live price. At local time on Sundays for your chosen exchange, you’ll almost certainly get the last Brent crude oil spot price that the market closed with.

Besides its primary role as the most important energy source, crude oil is also an essential raw material for manufacturing plastics. Because the supply of crude oil is limited but demand is constantly increasing, the price of oil is also continuously rising. Because crude oil is needed to manufacture other primary materials, it is the world’s most important commodity. The US investment bank Goldman Sachs estimates the proportion of crude oil used for primary materials production to be 45 per cent. Yes, WTI and Brent oil futures are commonly used for hedging purposes by participants in the oil industry. Oil producers, refiners, and other market participants often utilize futures contracts to manage their exposure to price volatility.

We recommend that you seek independent advice and ensure you fully understand the risks involved before trading. Information presented by DailyFX Limited should be construed as market commentary, merely observing economical, political and market conditions. It is not a solicitation or a recommendation to trade derivatives contracts or securities and should not be construed or interpreted as financial advice. Any examples given are provided for illustrative purposes only and no representation is being made that any person will, or is likely to, achieve profits or losses similar to those examples. DailyFX Limited is not responsible for any trading decisions taken by persons not intended to view this material.

The pricing of WTI and Brent oil futures is based on the underlying spot prices of the respective crude oils. Spot prices represent the current market value of oil for immediate delivery. Futures prices are determined by market participants’ expectations of future supply, demand fundamentals, conditions, storage costs, interest rates, and other relevant factors. The relationship between the futures and spot prices is influenced by market sentiment and the cost of carrying oil inventories. Crude oil as a commodity, its futures are the world’s most actively traded commodity. Such as the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990, the average monthly price of oil rose from $17 per barrel in July to $36 per barrel in October.

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