As of 2026-08-27, WTI trades at $83.08 — above the 50-day average ($79.16) and above the 200-day average ($77.94), indicating an uptrend — and is up 44.9% year-to-date. Brent trades at $87.95, up 44.8% year-to-date. The live forward curves below show whether the market is paying a premium for prompt barrels (backwardation, tight supply) or for deferred delivery (contango, comfortable supply).
| Signal | WTI | Brent | How to read it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last close | 83.08 | 87.95 | Front-month futures settlement, USD/bbl |
| vs. 50-day average | +5.0% | +4.5% | Above = short-term momentum positive |
| vs. 200-day average | +6.6% | +6.0% | Above = long-term trend intact |
| 3-month change | -4.9% | -4.5% | ~63 trading days |
| Year-to-date (2026) | +44.9% | +44.8% | From the first close of the year |
| 52-week range | 55.27–112.95 | 58.92–118.35 | Daily closing extremes |
| Metric | 2025 | 2026 (est.) | 2027 (forecast) | Unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WTI Crude Spot Average | 65.40 | 80.88 | 65.39 | $/bbl |
| Brent Crude Spot Average | 69.04 | 86.81 | 69.39 | $/bbl |
| Henry Hub Natural Gas Spot | 3.53 | 3.44 | 3.31 | $/MMBtu |
| US Crude Oil Production | 13.59 | 13.80 | 14.15 | Mb/d |
| World Petroleum Production | 106.12 | 100.83 | 109.74 | Mb/d |
| World Liquid Fuels Consumption | 103.98 | 102.73 | 104.96 | Mb/d |
Source: EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook. The earliest year is actual/estimated; later years are the EIA's official forecast, revised each month. Forecasts carry substantial uncertainty — see the EIA's own confidence intervals.
The EIA's Short-Term Energy Outlook projects WTI crude to average $80.88 per barrel in 2026 and $65.39 in 2027, with Brent averaging $86.81 and $69.39 respectively. These official forecasts are revised monthly.
The EIA projects Henry Hub natural gas to average $3.31 per MMBtu in 2027 (versus an estimated $3.44 in 2026).
Even official forecasts carry wide uncertainty — oil prices react to unforecastable supply disruptions, OPEC+ decisions and demand shocks. The EIA publishes confidence intervals alongside its point forecasts, and revises them every month. Treat any point forecast as a scenario, not a promise.
These are descriptive market signals computed from public data, not a price prediction or investment advice. Futures curves reflect carrying costs and risk premia as well as expectations, and past trend behavior does not guarantee future results.