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WTI Crude Oil Futures

Editorial

WTI Crude Oil futures on NYMEX are the North American light-sweet crude oil benchmark, one of the two most referenced crude benchmarks globally.

What it is

CME describes NYMEX WTI Crude Oil futures as a light-sweet crude futures market. WTI is the North American benchmark, distinct from the international Brent benchmark — the two are not interchangeable.

Benchmark context

The WTI–Brent spread is simply the price difference between the two benchmarks, which are priced in different regional markets with different logistics. This is structure, not a forecast — see the WTI versus Brent explainer.

Session context

WTI futures trade in defined sessions. Confirm the current trading hours, contract terms and holiday schedule on the official CME Group page before trading.

Sources: source  ·  Reviewed: 2026-08-20
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