WTI is trading at USD 74.02

What is the current oil price today?

WTI futures were trading at $74.02 a barrel at 9 a.m. ET. Year-to-date, WTI prices are up 0.79%.

Brent futures traded at $77.09/barrel, down 2.26% in the last 24 hours. Year-to-date, Brent prices have fallen 2.49%.

What is the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil today?

WTI futures fell 3.19% to $74.02/bbl at 9:00 a.m. ET.

WTI chart

While West Texas Intermediate prices have declined in 2024, they have increased 18.19% over the past three years.

WTI crude oil fell to its 52-week low of $67.81 per barrel on December 13, 2023. It reached its 52-week high of $95.52 on September 27, 2023. This is 22.51% above the current futures price.

Brent crude oil price

Brent futures fell 2.26% to $77.09/bbl at 9:00 a.m. ET.

Brent crude oil price chart

Brent crude oil is fundamentally subject to the same supply and demand factors that affect WTI crude oil prices, so the long-term price chart closely resembles the WTI chart.

Brent crude oil prices reached their all-time high of $147.50/bbl during the oil market boom in July 2008. However, WTI futures contract prices fell to as low as minus $40/bbl on April 20, 2020, mainly due to a lack of storage facilities in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic. Brent futures contracts remained well above zero, reaching their low of around $25/bbl that day.

Brent crude oil fell to its 52-week low of $72.48 a barrel on December 13, 2023. It reached its 52-week high of $96.62 on September 27, 2023. This is 20.21% above the current futures price.

What is crude oil?

Crude oil is one of the world's most important commodities. It serves as a major source of energy and as a raw material for the manufacture of plastics, chemicals, and other products. Almost all crude oil imported or produced in the United States is refined into petroleum products such as gasoline, diesel fuel, and heating oil.

The prices of US WTI crude oil and international Brent crude oil are influenced by several factors that can change the balance of supply and demand in the market.

The situation on the US market can drastically change short-term demand for heating oil and natural gas and lead to an increase in crude oil prices.

Natural disasters and geopolitical conflicts can disrupt production worldwide and lead to oil supply shortages. The United States and the global economy experience much higher industrial energy demand during periods of strong economic growth and lower demand during periods of economic recession. Finally, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries can significantly affect global crude oil supplies by increasing or reducing production.

WTI

WTI crude oil is a blend of oil from U.S. oil fields in Texas, North Dakota and Louisiana and is delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma.

WTI oil has a density of 39.6 degrees according to the American Petroleum Institute and is considered “light.” WTI also has a sulfur content of only 0.24%, making it very “sweet.” WTI crude oil is usually the benchmark for U.S. oil prices in the trading world.

Brent oil

Brent crude oil is a sweet, light blend of oil produced in the North Sea near Europe.

Brent crude oil is oil extracted from the Brent, Ekofisk, Forties and Oseberg oil fields. Brent has an API gravity of 38 degrees and a sulphur content of 0.4%, making it slightly heavier and less sweet than WTI. Brent is commonly used as a benchmark for international oil markets, such as markets in the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

WTI vs. Brent oil

WTI and Brent crude oil blends are both sweet, light crude oil blends used as benchmarks in financial markets. However, there are five key differences between WTI and Brent:

• Extraction: WTI is extracted from US oil fields in Texas, North Dakota and Louisiana, while Brent crude oil is extracted from the North Sea near Europe.
• Composition: WTI is slightly lighter and sweeter than Brent oil.
• Geopolitics: WTI prices are more influenced by US policies and measures, while international politics and embargoes have a greater impact on Brent prices.
• Exchange: Brent crude oil futures contracts are primarily traded on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), while WTI futures contracts are primarily traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX).
• Prices: The prices of WTI and Brent crude oil are strongly correlated, although Brent oil has historically traded at a slight premium to WTI.

Brent Crude/WTI spread

The difference between the spot price of Brent crude oil and WTI crude oil is called the Brent/WTI spread.

The Brent/WTI spread has historically fluctuated between $4 and $8 per barrel, but can widen or narrow based on factors related to supply and demand conditions in the US and globally. For example, the Brent/WTI spread reached almost $14 per barrel in April 2011, when protests sparked market fears of significant disruptions to oil supplies in the Middle East.

Crude oil futures prices

One of the most popular ways for investors to speculate on crude oil and other commodity prices is by trading futures contracts. Futures contracts are agreements to buy or sell a standardized amount of an asset at a specific price on a specific future date.

WTI Crude Oil Futures

The most popular WTI crude oil futures contracts are traded on the NYMEX. Each CL contract represents 1,000 barrels of oil and contracts trade Sunday through Friday from 6:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. US ET.

Brent crude oil futures

The most popular Brent Crude Oil futures contracts trade on ICE under the symbol B, but investors can also trade the contracts on the CME Globex trading platform under the symbol BZ. Trading hours for Brent futures on CME are the same as for WTI futures: Sunday through Friday from 6:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. US ET. However, on ICE business days, Brent futures trade from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. US ET.

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