WTI-Brent Near Parity -- EIA

The EIA is reporting:

Spot prices for benchmarks West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and North Sea Brent crude oil neared parity of around $109 per barrel July 19, and the Brent-WTI spread was still as close as $4 on July 30. By contrast, the average Brent-WTI price spread in 2012 was about $19 per barrel, and the spread was $23 per barrel as recently as February 2013. Since spring 2013, prices for these benchmarks have moved much closer together, as WTI increased in relation to Brent. This increase in the WTI price was the result of new U.S. transport infrastructure and U.S. refineries running at near-record level.

The linked article provides several reasons for the return to parity, which by the way, is the historical norm.