WTI vs Brent
WTI is the US crude benchmark priced at Cushing, Oklahoma; Brent is the North Sea benchmark used as a pricing reference for much of the world's oil.
WTI (West Texas Intermediate) is a light, sweet crude delivered at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for the NYMEX futures contract. Brent is a crude from the North Sea, priced through a basket of grades, and it is a pricing reference for many internationally traded crudes. The two prices generally move together.
The difference between them depends on transport costs, crude quality and regional supply. Traders care because the gap signals whether US crude is flowing to export markets or is building up domestically. It also determines which contract is the right hedge for a given exposure.
Worked example (illustrative numbers, not real data): Brent at 80 dollars and WTI at 76 dollars gives a spread of 4 dollars per barrel.