Trump Tariffs On India: State-Owned Oil Refiners Pull Back From Buying Russian Oil, Says Report

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Trump Tariffs on India: Amid Donald Trump's increasing pressure on India, the country's state-owned refiners are cutting back from purchasing Russian crude for now, Bloomberg reported quoting sources with direct knowledge of these companies' procurement plans.

The report comes a day after Donald Trump slapped an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian imports citing its continued relationship with Russia despite its prolonged attack on Ukraine.

State-owned companies including Indian Oi , Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum plan to bail out on spot purchases of Russian crude in the upcoming buying cycle until the government gives a clear guidance, the sources quoted by the news agency said.

The decision to skip purchasing the crude will affect buying of the Russia's Urals cargoes for October-loading, the report said.

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The global oil market has been watching India's crude purchase from Russia after resident Donald Trump doubled the levy on all Indian exports to the US.

The tension has swung futures this week as traders assess the odds of disruption to flows, as well as Moscow's ability to find alternative buyers should Indian refiners opt to take fewer barrels. Brent was little changed near $67 a barrel on Thursday, following a five-day drop.

India's stance on Russian oil purchase

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday, without referring to the tariffs, that he was ready to "pay a heavy price" for not compromising on the well-being of the country's farmers, dairy sector and fishermen.

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India buys about 88 per cent of its crude oil, which is converted into fuels like petrol and diesel, from overseas. Russian oil made up for hardly 0.2 per cent of all crude oil that India imported till 2021. After Moscow invaded Ukraine, Russian oil was available at a discount to international benchmarks due to western sanctions, and was quickly lapped up by Indian refiners. Russia is now India's largest oil supplier.

In July, India imported about 5 million barrels of oil a day, of which 1.6 million came from Russia.

(With agency inputs)

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