By April 2020 the price of WTI dropped by 80%, down to a low of about $5. As the demand for fuel decreased globally with pandemic-related lockdowns preventing travel, and due to excessive demand for storage of the large surplus in production, the price for future delivery of US crude in May became negative on 20 April 2020, the first time to happen since the New York Mercantile Exchange began trading in 1983.
By April 2020, the price of WTI plummeted by 80%, dropping to approximately $5. With the pandemic-induced lockdowns reducing global fuel demand and excessive storage capacity leading to a surplus, the cost of future US crude deliveries in May turned negative on April 20, 2020, marking the first occurrence since the New York Mercantile Exchange began trading in 1983.