Why is Brent the global oil benchmark?

Brent pricing developed from North Sea crude production starting in the 1970s. It became the global benchmark because North Sea crude is seaborne (easy to deliver globally), liquid (deep futures market), and light and sweet (widely refinery-compatible). About 75% of internationally traded oil is priced as a differential to Brent.

What is the Hormuz situation and how does it affect oil prices?

The Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman is the world's most important oil chokepoint, handling roughly 20% of global oil consumption. When Iran threatened to close the strait in February 2026 following US-Iran military escalation, Brent spiked to $138/bbl on April 7, 2026, the highest since June 2022. Negotiations and Saudi Arabia's spare capacity of ~2-3M bpd are the key factors for resolution.

What happened when the UAE left OPEC?

The UAE departed OPEC effective May 1, 2026, after years of tensions over its quota allocation relative to its capacity. The UAE had ~1.3M bpd of spare capacity. Following the departure, the EIA updated its OPEC spare capacity forecast from 3.8M bpd to 2.5M bpd in 2027, tightening the effective cushion available to buffer supply disruptions.

Live · Updated just now·USD/bbl

Brent crude price today: live

Snapshot · Coming soon

Brent is the global oil benchmark, pricing roughly 75% of internationally traded crude. It trades on ICE Futures Europe (BZ contract). UAE departed OPEC effective May 1, 2026. Strait of Hormuz tensions drove Brent to $138/bbl on April 7, 2026, the highest since June 2022.

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Brent Crude price chart

Brent Crude (TVC)USD/bbl

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Brent Crude E&P stocks

Major producers

Source: Yahoo Finance + SEC EDGARFull screener →

#	Company	Commodity revenue	Price	24h %	YTD	1Y	Geography
01	SHEL Shell plc Worlds largest LNG trader + major upstream crude producer. Moderated low-carbon capex in 2025; refocus on upstream + LNG. Integrated supermajor.	~70%	—	—	—	—	Global
02	COP BP plc Strategy reset in 2025: oil & gas now central to growth. BPX Energy (Permian, Eagle Ford, Haynesville) is core US business. Castrol spin-off announced. Returning cash via buybacks.	~75%	—	—	—	—	Global
03	TTE TotalEnergies Q1 2025 production 2.55 Mboe/d (+4% YoY). World #2 LNG behind Shell. ~33% capex to low-carbon (maintained vs other majors). Strong Angola, Nigeria, UAE, North Sea upstream.	~72%	—	—	—	—	Global
04	XOM Equinor Norwegian state-influenced (67% state-owned). Dropped 50% low-carbon capex target. Johan Castberg (Norway) came online 2025. Strong Permian and offshore Brazil positions.	~80%	—	—	—	—	Norway · USA · Brazil · Global
05	CVX Eni S.p.A. Restructured into Plenitude (renewables) and Eni Sustainable Mobility subsidiaries. Reduced renewable spend ~25% 2025-2028. Strong Africa upstream (Congo, Angola, Libya, Mozambique LNG).	~68%	—	—	—	—	Italy · Africa · Global

Reddit sentiment

Producer stock buzz

EnergyCurated top 5

Brent Crude producer stocks

All commodity stocks

#	Company	Ticker	Price	24h %	Exchange	Note
01	ConocoPhillips NYSE: COP	COP	--	--	NYSE	Top US independent E&P
02	ExxonMobil Corporation NYSE: XOM	XOM	--	--	NYSE	Largest US E&P
03	Chevron Corporation NYSE: CVX	CVX	--	--	NYSE	#2 US E&P
04	Shell plc NYSE: SHEL / LSE: SHEL	SHEL	--	--	NYSE	Global integrated
05	TotalEnergies SE NYSE: TTE / PA: TTE	TTE	--	--	NYSE	Global integrated
06	SLB Limited NYSE: SLB	SLB	--	--	NYSE	#1 oil services — global reach

Ranked by commodity exposure (30%+ rule). Source: CommoditiesTracker hub database, June 2026.

Brent Crude ETFs

Top funds by AUM

Source: Yahoo Finance + ETF issuer pagesAll brent crude ETFs →

Ticker	Fund	Structure	Expense ratio	AUM	YTD	1Y
BNO	United States Brent Oil Fund USCF	Futures	0.85%	—	—	—
USO	United States Oil Fund USCF	Futures	0.60%	—	—	—
XLE	Energy Select Sector SPDR State Street	Miners	0.09%	—	—	—
IXC	iShares Global Energy ETF BlackRock	Miners	0.40%	—	—	—
OIH	VanEck Oil Services ETF VanEck	Miners	0.35%	—	—	—

How brent crude prices move

What’s moving this market

Structural fundamentals · Reviewed annually

Supply

OPEC+ coordinates roughly 40% of world supply

OPEC+ (OPEC plus Russia, Kazakhstan, UAE, and others) manages production quotas covering roughly 40% of global oil supply. UAE departed OPEC effective May 1, 2026, reducing the coalition's spare capacity baseline. US shale (primarily Permian Basin, ~6.5M bpd) is the marginal non-OPEC supplier that moderates price spikes.

OPEC Secretariat · EIA STEO

Demand

Global oil demand is still growing, led by Asia

Global oil demand is approximately 103M bpd in 2026 and still growing, led by air travel recovery, petrochemicals (plastics, fertilizers), and emerging market transport. EV penetration is reducing gasoline demand in China and Europe but petrochemical feedstock demand is offsetting. The IEA and OPEC disagree on the timing of peak oil demand.

IEA Oil Market Report · OPEC MOMR

Policy and macro

Hormuz risk and Middle East geopolitics are the premium

The Strait of Hormuz (effectively closed since February 28, 2026 amid US-Iran escalation) carries roughly 20% of global oil consumption. The April 2026 Brent spike to $138/bbl was the direct result. EIA's May 2026 STEO forecasts Brent declining from ~$106/bbl in May-June to ~$89/bbl in Q4 2026 as supply responds. Saudi Arabia spare capacity (~2-3M bpd) is the key price buffer.

EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook · OPEC

Key market data

Brent Crude fundamentals

ICE Brent Daily Volume

~1.2M contracts

ICE Brent futures are the world's most liquid crude oil contract by volume and open interest. Each contract = 1,000 barrels. Settlement is cash-settled against the Platts Brent price assessment.

ICE Futures Europe daily reports

ICE Open Interest

See ICE

Brent open interest tracks speculative positioning and physical hedging. High open interest relative to historical norms signals elevated speculative activity; low open interest signals hedgers are light.

ICE Futures Europe

Share of Internationally Traded Oil

~75%

Roughly 75% of internationally traded seaborne crude is priced at a differential to Brent. Most long-term oil supply contracts in the Middle East, Africa, and North Sea reference Brent.

IEA Oil Market Report

OPEC Reference Basket

See OPEC

The OPEC basket is a weighted average of 13 OPEC member crude grades. It typically trades at a slight discount to Brent due to heavier and more sour crudes in the basket.

OPEC Secretariat · Daily

Brent-WTI Spread

See prices

Brent typically trades at a $3-7 premium to WTI reflecting North Sea vs Cushing delivery dynamics. The spread narrows when US export infrastructure is constrained; widens when Middle East geopolitical risk adds a Brent premium.

Computed from both feeds · Daily

Price Volatility (90-day)

~35%

Elevated in 2026 due to Hormuz crisis. In normal conditions Brent 90-day vol runs 20-28%.

Calculated · Daily

2026 price forecasts

Brent Crude price targets from 20 analysts

Aggregated 2026 price forecasts from major banks, research houses, and industry bodies. Range, median, and revision history — every forecast linked to its source.

Consensus range

View forecasts

See all forecasts

How to invest in brent crude

Ways to gain brent crude exposure

Full investing guide

ETFs

Brent Crude ETFs

The most accessible vehicle for retail investors. Trade like stocks, low expense ratios.

BNO USO XLE

Equities

Brent Crude stocks

Mining and producer stocks offer 1.5-3x leverage to the underlying commodity but carry operational risk.

SHEL COP TTE

Futures

Brent Crude futures

COMEX / LME / NYMEX futures provide direct price exposure with leverage. Requires a futures-enabled brokerage account.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions, answered

The current Brent crude price is shown at the top of this page from ICE Brent (BZ) futures. Brent is the international oil benchmark. Prices are quoted in USD per barrel (42 US gallons = 1 barrel).

Brent crude price today: live

Brent Crude price chart

Major producers

Producer stock buzz

Brent Crude producer stocks

Top funds by AUM

What’s moving this market

OPEC+ coordinates roughly 40% of world supply

Global oil demand is still growing, led by Asia

Hormuz risk and Middle East geopolitics are the premium

Brent Crude fundamentals

Brent Crude price targets from 20 analysts

Ways to gain brent crude exposure

Brent Crude ETFs

Brent Crude stocks

Brent Crude futures

Common questions, answered

More commodities investors track alongside brent crude

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Natural Gas