Limits RegistryPUBLIC RECORD
Limits RegistryThe May 2020 West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures contract settled at -$37.63 per barrel on April 20, 2020, on the New York Mercantile Exchange — the first and only time a major oil futures benchmark has ever traded and settled at a negative price, as collapsing COVID-19 demand and full storage tanks left traders paying to avoid taking physical delivery.
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The May 2020 West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures contract settled at -$37.63 per barrel on April 20, 2020, on the New York Mercantile Exchange — the first and only time a major oil futures benchmark has ever traded and settled at a negative price, as collapsing COVID-19 demand and full storage tanks left traders paying to avoid taking physical delivery.
The lowest settlement price ever recorded for a major crude oil futures benchmark, the first and only time such a contract has settled below zero.
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Limits Registry. LR-FIRST-NEGATIVE-OIL-FUTURES-PRICE. First time a major oil futures contract traded at a negative price. 2026.