Question
Q83.The term ‘West Texas Intermediate sometimes found in news, refers to a grade of :
A. Crude oil
B. Bullion
C. Rare earth elements
D. Uranium
Answer: A
Detailed Explanation
There are about 160 crude oils that are traded internationally. They vary in terms of their characteristics & quality. West Texas Intermediate and Brent Crude oil are two major types of crude oil benchmarks at the international arena. Hence, option A is correct.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI), which is a particular grade of crude oil, is the underlying commodity of oil futures contract of the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). Brent Crude, Dubai Crude and WTI Crude are the three major benchmarks in the pricing of oils in the global market. It was recently seen in news, as for the first time in history, the price of the May futures contract of WTI crude fell to a negative price of -$37.63 per barrel. This was due to the low demand of oil amid the Covid-19 crisis.
