T he price of Brent crude has a claim to be the world’s most important number. Two-thirds of the 100m barrels of oil traded each day derive their price from it. So do millions of futures contracts that buyers and sellers employ to manage risk. Some governments use the oil price to set tax rates; customers, for their part, are exposed through heating-oil and petrol prices. Dated Brent, as the benchmark is formally known, also anchors markets beyond petroleum. It sets the price for liquefied natural gas in energy-guzzling Asia. And as an indicator for economic health, it shapes the decisions of the world’s power brokers, from America’s Federal Reserve to China’s strategic planners.
布伦特原油的价格声称是世界上最重要的数字。每天1亿桶石油交易中的三分之二的价格从中获得了价格。买卖双方雇用的数百万期货合约也是如此。一些政府使用石油价格设定税率；就客户而言，客户通过加热油和汽油价格暴露。布伦特（Brent）的日期是正式知名的，也是石油之外的锚定市场。它为亚洲能量燃料的天然气设定了液化天然气的价格。作为经济健康的指标，它塑造了从美国的美联储到中国战略规划师的世界权力经纪人的决策。
