Coronavirus

Oil Trade Prices Fall Below $0 For The First Time Ever

The price for a barrel of West Texas Intermediate oil fell to negative $37.63 on NYMEX, the lowest price in history.

Oil Trade Prices Fall Below $0 For The First Time Ever
Eric Gay / AP

For the first time, U.S. oil prices fell into the negatives Monday.

The price for a barrel of West Texas Intermediate oil, the U.S. benchmark, fell to negative $37.63 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's the lowest it's ever been since NYMEX opened oil futures trading in 1983.

This is happening in part because many people are staying home amid the coronavirus pandemic, leading to low demand for oil.

So, what does the negative price tag mean? Oil producers would have to pay traders to take their product. But it doesn't mean you'll be getting paid to fill up your gas tank any time soon. 

At the pump, prices will pretty much stay the same. According to Axios, negative gas prices are extremely unlikely, although the best time to buy gas will be in a couple of weeks. 

Contains footage from CNN