Two benchmarks, two markets
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is US crude, priced at Cushing, Oklahoma, and traded on NYMEX. Brent is a blend of North Sea crudes and is the benchmark for most international oil trade.
Quality
Both are light and sweet, meaning low density and low sulphur, which makes them easy to refine into petrol and diesel. WTI is slightly lighter and sweeter than Brent.
Why the prices differ
Brent is waterborne, so it can be shipped almost anywhere. WTI is inland and depends on US pipelines, storage and export capacity. The gap between them, the Brent–WTI spread, widens or narrows with those logistics and with export demand.
Which one to watch
For global supply and demand, including OPEC+ policy and international shipping, Brent is the better gauge. For the US market, inventories and shale output, WTI is more relevant.
Futures, not physical barrels
The headline prices are for the front-month futures contract. When that contract nears expiry, the quote rolls to the next month, which can cause a visible step in the chart.
Educational content, not investment advice.