India's crude oil import pattern changes: OPEC share hits record low Russian discount oil tops largest supplier

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According to trade and industry data, the share of OPEC crude oil in India's crude oil imports fell to an all-time low in 2023, while the share of discounted Russian crude oil imports soared to an all-time high.

According to trade and industry data, the share of OPEC crude oil in India's crude oil imports fell to an all-time low in 2023, while the share of discounted Russian crude oil imports soared to an all-time high.
As the world's third largest oil importer and consumer, India has long been highly dependent on its Middle Eastern neighbors for oil to reduce transportation costs. Data show that for the first time in 2023, India's crude oil imports from OPEC members and non-members were basically the same; the annual crude oil imports reached an average of 4.65 million barrels per day, an increase of 2% year-on-year. In the first nine months of this fiscal year (from April), OPEC's share of India's crude oil import structure fell sharply to about 49.6 percent from 64.5 percent in the same period last year.
The restructuring of trade flows triggered by geopolitical tensions, coupled with rising transport costs for some traditional suppliers, has accelerated India's efforts to diversify its sources of imports, with India beginning to purchase low-cost crude oil from further afield, such as Russia. According to the data, Russian crude oil accounted for 36% of India's total crude oil purchases in 2023, with imports reaching 1.66 million barrels per day, while India's Russian crude oil imports in 2022 were only 651800 barrels per day. The influx of discounted Russian crude has also compressed India's Middle East crude imports to record lows.
Influenced by the boycott of Russian crude oil purchases by Western countries due to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the cost of Russian crude oil purchases from India has been significantly reduced. However, as the United States tightened relevant rules (including strengthening the review of banks and service providers to ensure that goods do not exceed the price ceiling of US $60 per barrel), some goods have shifted, and India's Russian crude oil imports in December fell to the lowest level in a year. The average daily import volume in that month was 1.34 million barrels, down about 16.3 percent from November.
Indian Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the core reason for the shift in cargo flows was pricing. In 2023, Russia officially replaced Iraq as India's largest oil supplier; Iraq retreated to second place, and Saudi Arabia slipped to third place.

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