West Texas and Brent (North Sea) oil are fairly similar, but there is a big ocean in between. Under normal circumstances, the prices of the two oils are fairly close.
Back in 2007/8 when oil hit $140 a barrel, the WTI crude was much higher, reflecting the artifical manipution of prices as oil traders were holding ships full of oil offshore, driving up the local price.
Now Brent Crude is $15 a barrel higher than WTI ($106 vs $91) which is a clear sign of concern in Europe about oil supplies due to problems in Libya and possibly spreading to Saudi Arabia.
When the price of European oil goes up, BP and Russia stand to earn a lot of money. I’m not saying either of those entities is behind the riots in the Middle East, but…
For an extra credit reading assignment, read up on the Suez Canal Crisis in 1956, and see what dots it connects with 2011.
