The American benchmark. It and Brent separate when transport or sanctions bite, and that spread is why a US converter and an Asian one can face different economics for the same fibre.
80 US dollars per barrel ↓ 5.79%
Settled 2026-07-01
Against a week ago (2026-02-01): ↑ 23.70%
Against a month ago (2024-09-01): ↑ 13.16%
Against a quarter ago (2021-02-01): ↑ 34.57%
415 observations held, 1992-01-01 to 2026-07-01.
Where these figures come from
- WTI crude (monthly) — International Monetary Fund via FRED, POILWTIUSDM, observed 2026-07-01. the day's published table
Read this first. These are settlement prices from the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange — the Chinese domestic market, in yuan per tonne, for a dated futures contract. They are not Cotlook A, not a world price, and not what a trader paid for a bale this morning. They are carried because China spins more than anywhere else, so the direction is the market’s direction even where the level is not.