NEWS: Brent Crude Oil + West Texas Intermediate (WTI) are major global crude oil benchmarks used to determine oil prices.

KEY DIFFERENCES

Origin:

• Brent → North Sea oil fields, between the Shetland Islands + Norway.
• WTI → Mainly USA; Cushing, Oklahoma, is a major storage + trading hub.

Quality:

• WTI → Generally lighter + sweeter.
• Brent → Generally slightly heavier + higher sulphur content than WTI.
• API Gravity: Higher API gravity → Lighter crude oil.
• Sulphur Content: Lower sulphur → Sweeter crude oil + generally easier refining.

Price Benchmark:

• Brent → International benchmark, widely used for supplies from Europe + Africa + the Middle East.
• WTI → Major benchmark for US crude oil.
• India’s Relevance: Brent is an important reference for India’s imported crude oil prices.
• Transportation: Brent benefits from North Sea maritime access, while US inland WTI may require pipelines before export.