WTI crude oil
CL · NYMEX · futuresWTI and the US oil market
West Texas Intermediate, or WTI, is a crude-oil benchmark associated with the US market. The NYMEX CL futures series quotes USD per barrel. A barrel is a volume unit and cannot be compared with a tonne price without further information.
WTI differs from Brent in quality and delivery arrangements. Their prices can diverge because of transport, inventories and regional conditions.
Production, stocks and refining
Output, producer decisions, shipping and refinery operations all influence price. A rising inventory can reflect weak demand, but also import timing or planned maintenance. A single weekly stock figure needs context.
Refineries buy crude and sell several products. RBOB gasoline and ULSD can therefore respond differently from their crude input.
Continuous futures and contract changes
Rolling between delivery months can create a price step that differs from the return on one unchanged position. WTI history can include negative prices, which a conventional logarithmic scale cannot represent. Exxon Mobil offers a different exposure combining production, costs and company decisions rather than a direct barrel price.
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