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A benchmark crude or marker crude is a crude oil that serves as a reference price for buyers and sellers of crude oil. There are three primary benchmarks, West Texas Intermediate (WTI), Brent Blend, and Dubai Crude. Other well-known blends include the OPEC Reference Basket used by OPEC, Tapis Crude which is traded in Singapore, Bonny Light used in Nigeria, Urals oil used in Russia and Mexico's Isthmus. Energy Intelligence Group publishes a handbook which identified 195 major crude streams or blends in its 2011 edition.〔International Crude Oil Market Handbook, 2011〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Pricing Differences Among Various Types of Crude Oil )〕 Benchmarks are used because there are many different varieties and grades of crude oil. Using benchmarks makes referencing types of oil easier for sellers and buyers. There is always a spread between WTI, Brent and other blends due to the transportation cost. ==West Texas Intermediate (WTI) == West Texas Intermediate is used primarily in the U.S. It is light (API gravity) and sweet (low-sulfur) thus making it ideal for producing products like low-sulfur gasoline and low-sulfur diesel. Brent is not as light or as sweet as WTI but it is still a high-grade crude. The OPEC basket is slightly heavier and more sour than Brent. As a result of these gravity and sulfur differences, before 2011 WTI typically traded at a dollar or two premium to Brent and another dollar or two premium to the OPEC basket.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Oil Industry Commentary )〕 Since 2011, WTI has traded at a significant discount to Brent. Edmonton Par and Western Canadian Select (WCS) "are benchmarks crude oils for the Canadian market. Both Edmonton Par and West Texas Intermediate are high-quality low sulfur crude oils with API gravity levels of around 40°. In contrast, WCS is a heavy crude oil with an API gravity level of 20.5°." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Benchmark (crude oil)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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