Oil

Oil trading

Trade US and UK Crude markets on an award-winning platform with integrated market news and analysis.

Oil explained

 

Live pricing

Our performance in numbers

0.1 m+
account holders*
1 .5k+
markets
0.55 s
average execution speed
50 %
of trades successfully executed

*StoneX retail trading live and demo accounts globally in the last 2 years.

Ways to trade oil

Spread betting Oil spread betting
CFD trading Oil CFDs
Best for
Tax-free trading in UK*
Hedging
Trade type
£ per point
Buy/sell CFDs
Tax
No UK Capital Gains Tax (CGT) or Stamp Duty*
No UK Stamp Duty. You do pay UK CGT but losses can be offset against tax*
Trade on
Global indices, FX, shares, commodities and more
Global indices, FX, shares, commodities and more
Commission
Commission-free
Share CFDs only
Platforms
Web, mobile and advanced platforms
Web, mobile and advanced platforms

Mobile trading app

Seize trading opportunities with our most easy-to-use mobile app to date, with simple one-swipe dealing, advanced charting, and seamless execution. Available on Android and iOS.

TradingView charts

Complete with one-swipe trading, custom indicators, alerts and drawing tools.


Trading Central

Harness the power of technical analysis and access real-time trade ideas on our most popular markets.


Performance Analytics

Gain deeper insight into your trading and discover how you could improve your performance.

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Platforms Mobile

How to trade oil with City Index

Whether you’re a new or experienced trader, it’s easy to open an account with City Index. All you have to do is complete our short, secure online form and you could be up and running on the live markets in minutes.

If you think an oil market like US Crude is going to go up in value, you go long or ‘buy’. If you think US Crude is going to go down in value, you short or ‘sell’ it. Ready to start trading now? Get started with your application.

How to trade with City Index

How to start trading oil

Oil trading is the act of buying and selling oil to make a profit – whether this is exchanging the physical commodity or speculating on its market price.

What moves the price of oil?

Global oil prices are determined by the forces of supply and demand, according to the model of price determination in microeconomics.

How to trade commodities

Discover everything you need to know about commodity markets, such as gold, oil and natural gas, including both hard and soft commodities.

Put our trading platform to the test

Try a risk-free demo account with virtual funds to hone your trading strategies.

More markets to consider

Bonds
Bonds

Bonds

Take a position on government bonds such as 10-year US T-Note, UK Long Gilt and Euro Bunds.
Markets rising
Markets rising

Interest rates

Make more of short-term trading opportunities by trading on interest rate price movement.
Options
Options

Options

Trade options on over 40 markets, including the UK 100, SP 500 and Germany 40, all from 4 points.

Oil trading FAQ

What are the margin requirements for oil?

The margin requirement for City Index’s oil markets – including US Crude and UK Crude – is 10%. That means you’ll need 10% of your position’s total value in your account in order to open a trade.

Say, for example, that you want to buy three UK Crude CFDs at $8653. Your total position is worth (8653 * 3) $25,959, so you’ll need $2,595 in your account as margin. The City Index will automatically convert that figure into your base currency, and display it on the deal ticket, so you’ll always know how much you need to make a trade.

You can find margin requirements for every market we offer in the City Index platform, which you can access with a free demo account.

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What's the best way to trade oil?

The best way to trade oil all depends on your individual goals, style and strategy. There are numerous ways to take your position on oil prices, and each brings its own unique benefits and drawbacks.

Most global oil trading takes place on futures markets. These financial derivatives facilitate the buying and selling of oil using contracts in which you trade oil at a set price on a set future date.

While retail traders can participate in the oil futures market, many choose to trade on futures prices using CFDs and spread bets instead. These products enable you to take a position on oil markets without ever owning the underlying asset itself.

Learn more about how CFDs and spread betting work.

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What is an oil benchmark?

An oil benchmark is a crude oil market that acts as a reference point for the prices of oil drilled around the world. The two best known oil benchmarks are US Crude (otherwise known as WTI) or UK Crude (known as Brent Crude).

Beyond these two headline markets, there are dozens of oil benchmarks that are used around the world. They help facilitate oil trading by acting as a guideline for the different varieties and grades of oil that are produced.

Different oil benchmarks will trade at different prices, according to the lightness and sweetness of the oil they represent. They will, however, tend to move in parallel – so if Brent Crude is moving up, chances are WTI will be up too.

Learn more about how to trade oil.

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If you have more questions visit the FAQ section or start a chat with our support.