What is the difference between Brent and WTI crude oil?
What is Brent crude oil?
Brent crude oil is a blended oil (a mix of brent, forties, oseberg and ekofisk) drilled from below the North Sea. It is popularly refined into diesel fuel and gasoline. In trading, Brent is one of the benchmarks for oil in the wider market, such as the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
What is WTI oil?
WTI (West Texas Intermediate) oil – US crude with IG – is a blend of several oils drilled and processed in the United States. It is commonly used for gasoline refining. In the trading world, WTI is primarily a benchmark for the US oil market.
◾ Brent crude vs WTI: five major differences
Extraction location
Composition
Geopolitical influences
Trading exchange
Pricing
1.Extraction location
Because Brent is extracted at sea and not on land, there are certain advantages. Large volumes of oil can quickly and safely be transported in underwater pipelines. In the US, however, the production advantage lies in new extraction technologies, such as well stimulation techniques and horizontal drilling.
2. Composition
When oil has a low sulphur content, it is known as ‘sweet’ oil. American Petroleum Institute (API) gravity refers to the density of the oil – measured on a scale from ten to 70. The higher the number, the less dense the oil. Light sweet oils flow more freely at room temperature, making them easier and cheaper to refine.
3.Geopolitical influences
The political state of oil producing countries has a significant impact on the commodity’s production and price. When it comes to crude oils such as Brent and WTI, traders should keep an eye on the political climate in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) regions and the US. A huge political shift in North America, for example, would affect WTI more than Brent crude, and the spread between WTI and Brent would likely widen.
4.Trading exchange
Oil is traded on exchanges, just like shares, but they are traded in the form of oil benchmarks. This enables traders to quickly identify the quality and drilling location of the oil they are buying and selling.
5. Pricing
Though there are some correlations in composition and usage, all crude oils are not priced equally. The difference between the spot price of Brent crude and WTI is called the Brent/WTI spread. Factors related to supply and demand, including production interruptions and geopolitical influences, can widen the spread.
An example of this would be the Arab Spring in 2011, which sparked fears of reduced Brent crude supply. The spot price reached $126.65 in April that year, while WTI was priced at $112.79.
Another example is the 2020 oil price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia, known as the OPEC crash. Brent crude plummeted to $33.36 (down by 24%) and US oil prices tumbled to $27.34 (down by around 34%). Soon after, the coronavirus pandemic sparked an oil storage crisis, which caused US crude to crash from $18.00 a barrel to -$38.00. This was the first time in history that the oil price fell to negative value.
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