Guide · measured
How to read crude oil order flow (WTI)
Crude oil order flow is the live record of who is buying and selling oil: the resting orders in the order book and the trades that hit them. On Swiftedge you watch it free and 24/7 on the WTI crude oil perpetual future. Over the 60 days to 10 November 2026 (1,440 hourly candles of the perpetual), the New York session carried 54 % of the volume, the hour of the oil futures day session open moved 1.5 times as much as an average hour, and the hour of the weekly EIA inventory report 1.6 times as much as the other Wednesday hours.
What oil order flow shows
The crude oil order book heatmap shows resting buy and sell orders as bright bands (walls) around the price; the oil footprint chart splits every candle into the barrels bought and sold at each price. Both are live in Swiftedge Depth for WTI, on the WTI crude oil perpetual, priced in US dollars per barrel and sized in barrels. It is not the exchange-traded WTI futures contract, and it trades around the clock.
When oil trades: the numbers
Measured on the 60 days to 10 November 2026 (1,440 hourly candles of the perpetual), open futures-market hours only. Asia from 7:00 PM ET (00:00 UTC), London from 08:00 London time, New York from the 09:00 New York open of the futures day session until the 17:00 close.
| Session | Share of volume | Average hourly range |
|---|---|---|
| Asia | 18.0 % | 0.61 % |
| London | 28.5 % | 0.95 % |
| New York | 53.5 % | 0.97 % |
Unlike silver, London matters for oil: almost as volatile per hour as New York, with more than a quarter of the volume. The fixed oil times, as the hourly candle that contains them against the other open hours:
| Hour containing | Average range | Other hours | Ratio | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day session open (09:00 New York) | 1.19 % | 0.80 % | 1.49× | 42 |
| EIA weekly report (Wednesday 10:30 New York) | 1.22 % | 0.76 % | 1.61× | 8 |
| WTI settlement (14:30 New York) | 0.96 % | 0.81 % | 1.18× | 42 |
| API weekly survey (Tuesday 16:30 New York) | 0.47 % | 0.86 % | 0.55× | 8 |
The EIA row is the Wednesday 10:30 hour on 8 Wednesdays; in one of those weeks (a US holiday) the report came a day later, so the true report-hour effect is if anything a little larger. The API survey comes half an hour before the futures market's daily break, when oil is usually quiet, and on the perpetual that hour moved about half as much as an average hour. The three busiest hours were 13:00 and 15:00 to 12:00 PM ET (17:00 UTC). In weeks with a Monday US holiday the EIA report moves to Thursday at 12:00 New York time and the API survey to Wednesday; oil trading sessions shows this week's actual times.
Reading walls around the inventory reports
Before a scheduled report, walls near the price tend to thin out: few traders want to leave size resting into a number. Watch the oil levels and the heatmap in the minutes before 10:30 New York time on a Wednesday: walls that are pulled, and a book that refills afterwards, are normal. After the release, the footprint shows whether buyers or sellers took the first move, and whether large walls were traded through (real) or pulled (not). None of it predicts the next move; it shows who was active.
Weekends and the daily break
The WTI futures market closes from Friday 17:00 to Sunday 18:00 New York time and for an hour every weekday evening. The oil perpetual keeps trading: in those hours its median volume was 19 % of an open hour and its hourly range 37 % of an open hour's, so weekend news can move it, on a much thinner book.
Common questions
Where can I see crude oil order flow for free?
On Swiftedge, with no sign-up: the oil heatmap in Depth, the oil footprint chart and oil levels today, on the WTI crude oil perpetual future, 24/7.
When is the EIA crude inventory report?
Normally on Wednesday at 10:30 New York time; in weeks with a Monday US holiday it moves to Thursday at 12:00. In our measurement the Wednesday 10:30 hour moved 1.61 times as much as the other Wednesday hours.
When is oil most active?
From the London afternoon through the New York morning: the hour of the 09:00 New York day session open moved 1.49 times as much as an average hour, and New York carried 54 % of the volume.
Does oil trade at weekends?
The oil perpetual does, 24/7. The WTI futures market is closed from Friday 17:00 to Sunday 18:00 New York time.