Understanding Crude Oil in the United States

NYMEX WTI Crude Oil is the world’s most liquid crude oil benchmark, providing access to global crude oil pricing with the most diverse set of futures and options contracts.

With WTI competing directly in the global energy markets as the price discovery leader, open interest continues to grow as customers hedge their oil market risk.

Volumes on NYMEX WTI Crude Oil futures (CL) and Crude Oil options (LO) have been strong, in part reflecting the higher levels of volatility in both crude oil and refined products.

The infrastructure investment in the U.S. Gulf Coast has transformed WTI into a waterborne crude, with extensive export capacity. The U.S. exported 4 million barrels per day in 2023, making it the largest supplier of waterborne light sweet crude oil to the globe.  With Permian production still growing, the influence of the U.S. on the global oil market is expected to grow.

The WTI-Brent spread has become a key indicator for U.S. crude oil exporters and overseas buyers. The spread is actively traded on CME as CL/BZ, and typically represents the cost of transportation via pipeline and ship from the U.S. to European markets.

In addition to WTI at Cushing, there are active physical and financial markets for different grades of oil around the U.S. These markets, such as WTI Midland, Mars, and WTL trade as differentials, or spreads, to NYMEX WTI at Cushing, and are assessed by price reporting agencies. CME lists a suite of actively traded cash-settled futures contracts based on the prices from ArgusMedia.  

As the Gulf Coast market has matured, Argus WTI Houston has become the true indicator of value for the region, watched by U.S. refiners and exporters alike. CME Group WTI Houston (Argus) vs. WTI Trade Month Futures contract, also referred to as its code “HTT,” is the instrument of choice for managing crude oil risk in the region. In 2024, open interest in HTT exceeded 350,000 barrels with average daily volume of 10,000 contracts, up over 200% from 2022.

Weekly Energy options are available for trading with greater precision, allowing for the greater customization of risk management with increased savings and more strategies.

Weekly Energy Options allow for:

• Flexibility to manage short-term volatility and risk
• Precision timing to target specific market movements or events
• More expirations: weekly contracts listed for each weekday for four weeks at a time
• More ways to limit exposure
• Shorter expirations to gain market exposure at a lower premium

For more information on this product please visit the CME Group product specifications page.