India’s crude oil imports rose 1.7% in September to 19.93 million metric tons month-on-month, their highest level since June, government data showed on Monday.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
India is the world’s third-biggest oil importer and consumer, making this data a key indicator of its oil demand.
BY THE NUMBERS
On a yearly basis, crude oil imports rose 6.1%, from 18.79 million tons in September 2024, data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell shows.
Meanwhile, imports of crude oil products rose about 20.9% on a yearly basis to 4.40 million tons in September, while product exports fell 4.8% to 6.18 million tons.
KEY QUOTE
“Over the last few years, September crude imports tended to be lower compared to August. This year it seems geopolitical tensions and sanctions risks likely supported imports,” said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
CONTEXT
The European Union, the UK and the U.S. have imposed a raft of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine, including fresh U.S. sanctions on Thursday targeting Russia’s two top oil producers Lukoil and Rosneft. The U.S. has given companies until November 21 to wind down their transactions with the Russian oil producers.
Indian refiners are poised to sharply curtail imports of Russian oil to comply with the new U.S. sanctions, industry sources said on Thursday, potentially removing a major hurdle to a trade deal with the U.S.
India’s Russian oil imports between April and September fell 8.4% on year due to narrower discounts and tighter supplies, with refiners seeking more oil from the Middle East and the U.S., according to trade sources and shipping data.
Two Indian refiners have bought 4 million barrels of Guyanese crude oil from U.S. major Exxon Mobil to be delivered at the end of 2025 or in early 2026, in rare imports from the South American producer, trade sources said on October 17.