India has ramped up its crude oil imports from the Middle East while reducing purchases of Russian crude, Indian media have reported, citing data from Kpler. The country, however, is not planning to completely suspend Russian oil imports despite the U.S. threat of 100% tariffs.
Oil imports from Middle Eastern producers averaged 3 million barrels daily this month, Kpler said, as quoted by The Telegraph, while Russian oil purchases stood at a daily average of 1.75 million barrels.
The Middle East September average represents a return to pre-war import levels, while the Russian import daily average is a decline from August, when flows averaged 2.1 million barrels daily, per earlier Kpler data that forecast the September average for Russian crude imports at 1.9 million barrels.
The decline, however, does not mean Indian refiners are about to stop buying any Russian crude. In fact, Russia remains the biggest single supplier of crude oil to India, even at its smaller September share of the total. That total, by the way, stood at 5.3 million barrels daily, which was an increase of 600,000 barrels daily from August, and an even bigger increase, of 700,000 barrels daily, from a year earlier.
“Russia remains a central part of India’s crude import basket, and we do not see the latest decline as India moving away from Russian barrels altogether,” Kpler analyst Sumit Ritolia.
India is the second-largest importer of Russian crude oil, behind China, while imports from Russia have accounted for nearly half of all Indian crude purchases in recent months.
As one of the biggest buyers of Russian crude oil, India could face tariffs of up to 100% on its goods exported to the United States following the latest sanction package. Moreover, the potential tariffs could sour trade relations just as New Delhi and Washington have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal for month.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
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