Argus WTI Houston
The US Gulf coast has emerged as the global epicentre of crude price discovery
WTI Houston: the Heart of Global Oil Markets
Argus can help you to discover US Gulf coast’s pivotal role in shaping the global oil landscape. As a central production hub, this region contributes 12% of the world's oil production, with over 9 million daily barrels, including offshore production. Home to 10% of global refining capacity, PADD 3 boasts over 50 complex refineries and a CDU capacity of 10 million barrels per day.
US Gulf Coast role in global oil
World's oil production
12% of the world's oil production, with over 9 million daily barrels, including offshore production.
Global refining capacity
Home to 10% of global refining capacity, PADD 3 boasts over 50 complex refineries and a CDU capacity of 10 million barrels per day.
Global oil volumes
With WTI crude being exported to over 70 countries, this region is a cornerstone of global oil exports, accounting for 10% of global oil volumes.
Argus WTI Houston: Your Benchmark for Price Transparency
Argus WTI Houston is at the forefront of price transparency, ensuring fair and accurate pricing within the global oil market. With WTI crude being exported to over 70 countries, this region is a cornerstone of global oil exports, accounting for 10% of global oil volumes.
A Global Waterborne Crude, Underpinned by a Liquid Pipeline Market
In most major markets, crude oil is transported by water. However, the WTI Houston and Midland markets are unique, with oil travelling first by pipeline in rateable transactions. This high volume of daily transactions provides numerous points of price discovery throughout the day, expertly captured by our team of crude oil market reporters. Cargoes at the US Gulf Coast are priced at a differential to the pipeline market, benefiting from the underlying price dynamics of the highly liquid and transparent US pipeline market.
Understanding the WTI Supply Chain
Understanding the WTI supply chain and the drivers of its price formation is imperative for anyone buying, selling, or trading crude oil globally. The Gulf Coast stands out with its ability to process heavy crude, housing over 60% of global coking capacity. This region produces and consumes a significant amount of oil, creating a unique market with integrated production and refining capabilities.
WTI and Argus: A Deeply Rooted Relationship
Argus WTI assessments at Midland and Houston have been the standard physical benchmarks for US crude and settlement indexes for a robust derivatives market for two decades. These prices are assessed as differentials to the Argus WTI formula basis, based on the Nymex light sweet crude futures contract — one of the world’s most actively traded oil futures. Argus WTI Houston and Argus WTI Midland collectively form the basis of the world’s third-largest crude oil derivatives market, after Nymex light sweet and Ice Brent. Our rich, deep, and trusted coverage of the US crude oil market is unrivalled, making Argus the clear choice for trading companies seeking to manage WTI positions in both physical and paper markets.
Latest crude oil news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global crude oil industry.
US sanctions will limit shipper engagement with PGSA
US sanctions will limit shipper engagement with PGSA
Dubai, 8 June (Argus) — Any vessels engaging with Iran's new Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) to secure safe passage through the strait of Hormuz are highly unlikely to be owned or chartered by major tanker operators or oil companies, and will be making any toll payments to Iran without using US dollars, shipping sources tell Argus. Tehran established the PGSA at the start of May to assert control over shipping passing through the strait, access to which Iran has severely restricted since the start of the US-Iran war at the end of February. The PGSA said this week that more than 300 non-Iranian vessels had submitted information to it since it began operations to secure safe passage through the waterway. About 42pc of the vessels were oil tankers and 8pc LNG carriers, it said. Around 77pc of vessels submitting requests were looking to exit the strait, and 23pc looking to enter, it added, noting that of those vessels looking to exit, around 28pc were destined for China, 19pc for India and another 23pc for elsewhere in Asia. The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (Ofac) imposed sanctions on the PGSA at the end of May, and this will act as a serious deterrent to major listed oil companies and tanker operators from engaging with Iran, shipping sources say. "Large shipping companies are typically publicly listed and can't simply make payments to Iran for transit," one broker says. "Every financial transaction is closely monitored, and payments are usually conducted in US dollars. Falling under Ofac sanctions would carry significant consequences, including the freezing of assets and accounts, making the risks substantial." Shadow play But the situation may be different for vessels in the so-called "shadow fleet" that has handled sanctioned trade in Russian, Iranian and Venezuelan oil in recent years, other sources suggest, or for shipowners from countries such as China that have been less concerned about US sanctions. Operators of such vessels may be able to limit their exposure to Ofac sanctions risk by settling any payments to the PGSA using local currencies such as the Chinese yuan, or via alternative mechanisms like cryptocurrency transfers. It is even possible, a shipping consultant suggests, that Iran may be looking at payment in kind, from the vessel's flag state or beneficiary state, such as military equipment or aid, which would also make it hard for Ofac to link payment directly to the actual transit. Insurance is another consideration that would limit engagement with the PGSA, shipping sources add. "Any international insurer will have warranties on their war policies meaning normal [non-"shadow fleet"] ships cannot pay any money to [Iran's] Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)," one insurance broker notes. That would deter a shipper from paying a toll to the PGSA, the broker said, although it might not necessarily prevent them from contacting the authority for permission to transit the strait. Ofac's sanctions statement explicitly linked the PGSA to the IRGC, noting that it "extorts vessels transiting the strait of Hormuz through the so-called Persian Gulf Strait Authority, a government agency aimed at imposing illegitimate tolls on commercial traffic". Some shipping sources also remain sceptical of the PGSA's claims, which are hard to verify given that the few vessels still moving through Hormuz routinely turn off their transponders to disguise identity and reduce the risk of attack. "I don't believe 300 owners signed up for this," a shipping source with one oil company tells Argus. "I think this is one of their media plays." By Anna Cherkizova, Nader Itayim and Sean Lui Mideast Gulf crude export infrastructure Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Iran launches missiles at Israel
Iran launches missiles at Israel
Washington, 7 June (Argus) — Tehran on Sunday said its armed forces launched ballistic missiles at targets in northern Israel to retaliate against Israeli strikes on Beirut, Lebanon. Israel's Defense Forces confirmed the Iranian missile attack and said it was working to intercept the incoming missiles. This was Iran's first attack on Israel since 8 April. US president Donald Trump urged Tehran not to escalate further after the latest missile salvo, according to a Fox News account of an interview with Trump. The White House has confirmed the Fox News report. "What I would suggest to Iran: You've shot your missiles, that's enough — get back to the table and make a deal," Trump told Fox News. Trump said that he was "unhappy" with the Israeli attacks on Beirut and that those strikes have "not been coordinated" with the US. Trump since 22 May has described a US-Iran peace deal as practically finalized. He told Fox News he expected a deal to be signed on "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and then this happens", in reference to the strike in Beirut and the Iranian missile attacks on Israel. Israel described its attack on Beirut as targeting a Hezbollah command center and said it was in retaliation for Hezbollah's missile and drone attacks on northern Israel. Israel's military operations in Lebanon, nominally against the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, have resulted in civilian casualties and significant material damage. Israel and Lebanon's central government have reached several ceasefire agreements, with the US facilitating those talks. But Lebanon's central government has little control over Hezbollah. The Iran-backed militant group, in response to the Israeli incursions, has been shelling civilian and military targets in northern Israel. Iran's foreign ministry said the Iranian missile attack was also in response to what Tehran deems US violations of its ceasefire agreement with Iran, including US attacks on Iran-bound vessels. Low-intensity fighting between US and Iranian forces has flared up repeatedly over the past ten days, with the US targeting Iranian military infrastructure around the strait of Hormuz and Iran responding with missile and drone attacks against US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain. Reaching a deal with Tehran has proven elusive because of lingering differences over the status of navigation through the strait of Hormuz and the future of Iran's nuclear program. Tehran also insists on a complete stop to the Israeli military incursions in Lebanon. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Opec+ 7 agrees to 188,000 b/d July target hike
Opec+ 7 agrees to 188,000 b/d July target hike
Dubai, 7 June (Argus) — The seven core Opec+ members agreed on Sunday to another modest 188,000 b/d increase in their collective production target for July, despite the conflict in the Middle East continuing to disrupt supplies from several of the group's biggest producers. The increase mirrors that which the group ꟷ Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman ꟷ agreed to for June at its last meeting on 3 May. But it falls short of the 206,000 b/d increases from the two previous months ꟷ reflecting the UAE's late-April decision to exit both the Opec and Opec+ alliances effective 1 May. The increases are part of a wider process that began in April last year to unwind 1.65mn b/d of production cuts, but they will not result in any real output increases until the strait of Hormuz reopens. The group has met and agreed to raise its production target four times since the start of the US-Iran war on 28 February, which prompted Tehran to begin severely disrupting shipping through the strait. This de-facto closure of the key waterway has forced several Mideast Gulf countries — including three of the seven in this group — to significantly scale back production since they rely on the strait for their energy exports. Argus estimates that crude production from these three countries was close to 8.5mn b/d below their cumulative target for May. Overall Opec+ output in May was down 9.6mn b/d from the level before the war began. With no obvious end in sight to the conflict, or a re-opening of the strait, production from the Mideast Gulf looks almost certain to remain constrained in the short-term. As in previous months, the group reiterated that it retains "full flexibility to increase, pause or even reverse" previously implemented adjustments to their production targets. The group of seven is scheduled to meet next on 5 July. By Nader Itayim Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EU eyes sector-specific ETS fallback benchmarks
EU eyes sector-specific ETS fallback benchmarks
London, 5 June (Argus) — The European Commission will propose in the upcoming revision of the EU's emissions trading system (ETS) the introduction of sector-specific "fallback" benchmarks used in free allocation calculations, to address concerns expressed by some industries. The commission should have a "specific empowerment" to define such sector-specific benchmark values for 2026-30, including the methodology for how these are calculated, the climate change expert group at the commission's climate directorate noted on 3 June, in a document seen by Argus . The revised methodology should become applicable as early as possible "to ensure timely and effective support" to the affected sectors, the group noted. Fallback benchmarks are the default efficiency benchmarks applied when product-specific carbon intensity benchmarks — used to calculate free emission allowances under the EU ETS — are unavailable. The proposed revision to heat and fuel fallback benchmarks put forward by the commission in a consultation last month would cut free allowances per tonne of product by around 34pc. A group of EU countries raised concerns that the current fallback methodology is unrealistic in terms of what is physically possible, as many affected installations continue to rely on fossil-fuel based heat production because of technological constraints or a lack of cost-effective alternatives. Industry groups have voiced similar concerns. Sector-specific fallback benchmarks could be developed in sectors with at least 30 sub-installations, while the generic fallback values are maintained for the other sectors. These benchmarks would be calculated taking into account 2021-22 emissions from the top 10pc performers of the identified sectors. This would create a need for an additional 20mn-25mn free ETS allowances, although this would likely not trigger a change in the cross-sector correction factor (CSCF), according to the document. The CSCF ensures that the total amount of free allowances allocated under the ETS does not exceed the overall emissions cap for any given year. Extraction of natural gas, ceramic tiles and flags, extraction of crude petroleum and transport via pipeline would be the sectors requiring the largest amount of additional free allowances for the entire five-year period, at 6.7mn, 5.9mn, 3mn and 5mn, respectively. The commission's empowerment to introduce these changes will be introduced in the wider ETS review due on 15 July. By Erisa Senerdem Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Why Argus WTI?
Unrivalled methodology
Argus reports the US Gulf coast pipeline market the way it trades, rather than forcing it into a one-size-fits-all methodology. We publish volume-weighted average indexes for each assessed grade and location using reported deals done, and publish the underlying deals themselves. This provides our subscribers with accuracy and convenience, as well as a transparent audit trail.
An all-in-one view of your data
Hourly snapshots of the WTI Midland and WTI Houston markets can be viewed on the Argus Crude Market Ticker, also accessible on CME Direct. And for the first time, Argus WTI Midland and Houston futures can be traded directly on-screen through CME Direct, including by entities that do not retain a cash market broker.
Innovation and responsiveness
Argus has reported waterborne cargo prices for WTI Midland for several years on both fob US Gulf coast and delivered-Europe and Asia bases. As the market has developed, so has our approach. In November 2022, we augmented our rolling price for fob Midland WTI by reporting three intramonth periods, to better reflect market structure and the way cargoes are traded.
An expert reporting team
The Argus WTI Houston and Midland assessments are underpinned by the expertise of our Americas editorial team. We demystifying these complex markets through independent and transparent pricing, built on the strength of our relationships with the market. We have been surveying these pipeline markets for decades, meaning we understand the vital connections and nuances that exist.
Explore our crude oil products
Argus crude oil services include global daily, monthly, and forecasted prices, with forward curves and consulting services for the international crude markets