West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures, traded on NYMEX under ticker CL, are the headline US benchmark for crude-oil pricing. WTI is a high-quality 'sweet light' crude (low sulphur, light gravity) physically delivered at Cushing, Oklahoma — the famous storage hub at the centre of the US pipeline network. The standard CL contract is 1,000 barrels priced in USD per barrel; one contract therefore notionally represents about $80,000 at typical 2026 price levels. WTI is the underlying for the world's most-traded oil futures contract by open interest.

WTI is one of two major global oil benchmarks (the other being Brent, traded on ICE Futures Europe). WTI is the dominant North American benchmark and is the price that determines US gasoline costs at the pump; Brent is the dominant European/Asia-Pacific waterborne benchmark. The price differential between WTI and Brent (often $3-6/bbl) reflects logistics, US pipeline-capacity constraints, and quality differences.

NYMEX WTI futures launched on 30 March 1983 — among the earliest energy futures contracts ever traded. The contract grew rapidly to become the world's most-traded commodity future. Major price episodes: 1990 Gulf War spike to $40, 1998 Asian-crisis low of $11, the 2003-2008 bull market peak of $147.27 (July 2008), the post-Lehman crash to $32 (December 2008), the 2014-16 shale-glut collapse from $107 to $26, the COVID-driven April 2020 'negative oil' episode where the May 2020 futures contract briefly traded at -$37.63 per barrel (an unprecedented event caused by storage exhaustion at Cushing).

Through 2022-26 WTI has traded in a broad $60-95 range, reflecting the OPEC+ supply-management framework and persistent US shale-output growth.

NYMEX WTI trades nearly 24 hours on CME Globex. In IST:

Read WTI alongside three signals. First, OPEC+ supply policy — production-quota changes announced at OPEC+ ministerial meetings (roughly every 1-3 months) drive 3-8% same-day WTI moves. Second, US Energy Information Administration (EIA) weekly inventory data (every Wednesday 20:00 IST) — surprise builds or draws move WTI by 2-5%. Third, the US dollar index — a weaker USD typically supports WTI prices (oil is USD-priced; a weaker USD makes oil cheaper for non-USD buyers).

For Indian investors, WTI is one of the most consequential commodity prices to monitor. India imports roughly 85% of its crude requirement; a $10/bbl sustained rise in WTI typically translates into 0.4-0.5% additional CPI inflation and meaningful pressure on the rupee.