International Energy Markets
WTI vs Brent spread + international context
Retail fuel prices by country aren’t available through any free public API — EIA doesn’t publish them; IEA keeps them behind a paid subscription; commercial feeds (Platts, Argus, IHS Markit) are licensed. This page shows the available free-data alternative: the WTI–Brent spread as a proxy for the US-vs-international crude-benchmark gap.
WTI vs Brent
WTI (US benchmark, Cushing Oklahoma) and Brent (North Sea, international waterborne benchmark) diverge when US shale production outruns takeaway capacity (WTI discount widens) or when geopolitical risk concentrates in the Middle East / Europe (Brent premium widens).
Brent premium (Brent − WTI)
Positive values = Brent trades above WTI.
Interpretation
- Wide Brent premium (>$5) typically signals US shale glut or Cushing storage constraints (2011-2014); Middle East supply risk (2018, 2020 March Saudi-Russia war); or European demand spikes (post-Ukraine).
- Narrow or inverted spread (WTI > Brent) is rare and usually reflects US-specific supply disruptions or Brent oversupply.
- Secular narrowing since 2016 — US became a significant crude exporter after the 2015 export-ban repeal, arbitraging the two benchmarks more tightly.
What’s missing and why
| Data | Why not on this page |
|---|---|
| Country-level retail gasoline / diesel | Not in EIA’s free data; IEA publishes behind paid subscription |
| Country-level natural-gas prices | Same — TTF, JKM, NBP benchmarks sit behind commercial feeds |
| Global refining margins | Same |
| Detailed refined-product prices | Same |
A comprehensive international price section would require a paid data feed. The visualizations shipped here use only public-domain US government data.