Dubai and Oman
Dubai Crude is also known as Fateh is produced in the Emirate of Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates. Dubai's only refinery, at Jebel Ali, takes condensates as feedstocks, and therefore all of Dubai's crude production is exported. For many years it was the only freely traded oil in the Middle East, but gradually a spot market has developed in Omani crude as well.
For many years, most of the oil producers in the Middle East have taken the monthly spot price average of Dubai and Oman as the benchmark for sales to the Far East (WTI and Brent futures prices are used for exports to the Atlantic Basin). In July 2007, a potential new mechanism arose in the form of the Dubai Mercantile Exchange, which offers futures contracts in Omani crude. Whether the DME will be successful, and whether Omani futures prices will be adopted by producers and buyers as a benchmark, remain to be seen.
Read more about this topic: Benchmark (crude Oil)